GIFT  OF 
Class   of  1900 


If  / 

a* 


THE   LIFE 


First  Mathematical-Fellow  of 
Princeton  College. 


THOMAS  D.  SUPL^E, 

Head  Master  of  St.  Augustine's  College, and  Author  of  "Riverside,  a 

Romance,"  "Plain  Talks,"  "Life  of  E.  D.  Saunders, D.  D.," 

"  Analysis  of  Trench  on  Words,"  etc. 


SAN  FRANCISCO: 
BACON   &   COMPANY, 

508  Clay  Street. 

1879. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1878, 

BY  THOMAS  D.  SUPLEE, 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


c\ 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER.  PAGE. 

I.     The  Blands  . . . 5 

II.    The  Pryors  and  the  Rices 17 

III.  Childhood  at  Charlottes ville 27 

IV.  School  Life 35 

V.     In  War  Time    47 

VI.     Besieged 53 

VII.     The  Baptism  of  Fire 63 

VIII.     A  Remarkable  Boy 71 

IX.     College  Life  at  Princeton 83 

X.    Literary  Laurels 97 

XI.    The  Debating  Quintette Ill 

XII.     Revival 119 

XIII.  Triumph 131 

XIV.  The  Mathematical-Fellow 145 

XV.     On  English  Soil 155 

XVI.     Reunion  and  Home  Life 165 

XVII.    Law  Studies 173 

XVIII.     Lost  and  Found 183 

XIX.     Burial 189 

XX.  Aftermath  ..                                                          .  195 


886091 


CHAPTER    I. 


THE     ELANDS. 


u  I  pray  you,  let  us  satisfy  ourselves, 
And  search  revolving  periods  past,  to  look, 
With  recollected  interest,  on  all 
The  dim  memorials,  and  things  of  fame, 
That  do  renown  this  ancient  family." 

—  Watson. 


HE  ancient  homesteads  which  crown  the  banks 
of  the  James,  York,  Rappahannock,  and  other 
rivers  of  Virginia,  constitute  one  of  the  most 
pleasing  features  in  its  scenery.  They  make  the  be- 
holder forget  the  present,  and  carry  him  back  into  the 
early  days  of  the  "  Old  Dominion."  These  "  homes," 
occupying  lofty  heights  or  peeping  from  embowering 
foliage,  whose  antiquated  appearance  is  in  such  strong 
contrast  with  all  that  is  modern  and  familiar,  in  some 
instances  date  back  more  than  two  hundred  and  fifty 
years. 

' '  The  '  baronial '  style  of  living  has  long  since  passed 
away  with  failing  fortunes  in  the  families  once  inhabit- 
ing these  old  houses  ;  but  the  houses  themselves  re- 

2 


6  PRYOR  1    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

main,  with  their  wide  portals,  their  grand  staircases, 
their  lofty  ceilings,  and  elaborate  carvings — queer  old 
relics  of  the  days  of  coaches-and  six,  silk  stockings, 
hair-powder,  and  what  is  called  '  aristocracy. '  This 
term  has  aroused  enmity  in  certain  minds  against  the 
old  Virginians  ;  and  yet  they  were  not  aristocrats  in 
any  bad  sense.  The  feeling  of  class  existed  in  the 
colonies  then,  as  it  existed  in  England  ;  but  the  social 
prominence  and  importance  of  the  landed  proprietors 
was  directly  attributable  to  the  circumstances  of  their 
position.  They  came  over  from  England,  generally 
with  reduced  fortunes,  if  not  absolutely  poor  ;  but 
they  were  men  of  education,  energy,  and  great  intel- 
ligence; and  they  had  the  English  passion  for  acquir- 
ing land,  and  attaining  to  'family  importance.'  As 
land,  and  rich  land,  too,  was  exceedingly  cheap,  they 
succeeded  with  little  difficulty  in  obtaining  extensive 
tracts  on  the  sole  condition  that  they  should  settle  it 
and  defend  it  from  the  Indians.  Then,  as  slaves  were 
imported  from  Africa  in  large  numbers,  and  indentured 
servants  came  from  England,  the  land-holders  gradually 
cleared  large  bodies  of  rich  'low-grounds,'  as  the  river 
bottoms  were  called,  built  substantial  and  commodious 
houses — often  very  grand  ones,  like  'Rosewell,'  the 
'  Page-house '  on  the  York — exchanged  their  much- 
prized  tobacco  in  London  for  rich  furniture,  costly 
wines,  laces,  silks,  embroidery,  books,  and  every  ob- 
ject of  luxury,  and  behold  !  the  originally  poor  immi- 
grant had  become  the  squire,  lord  of  the  manor,  and 
'  aristocrat. '  He  powdered  his  hair,  wore  silk  stock- 
ings, rolled  in  his  coach,  with  the  family  coat-of-arms 


THE    ELANDS.  7 

on  the  panel,  to  the  rude  court-house,  where  he  sat  in 
awful  state  as  magistrate  ;  or  went  with  his  brother 
nabobs  to  listen  to  the  rector  of  the  Established  Church ; 
attended  the  brilliant  assemblies  at  '  Raleigh  '  ;  for- 
mally called  on  his  excellency  the  governor  ;  and  re- 
garded himself,  perforce  of  wealth,  position,  and  au- 
thority, as  one  of  the  leaders  of  society.  There  is 
nothing,  however,  to  show  that  they  were  an  arrogant, 
bad,  or  despotic  race  of  men.  Much  remains  to  prove 
that  they  were  just  the  opposite — kindly,  charitable, 
good  neighbors,  and  as  open-handed  with  their  means 
as  they  were  tenacious  of  their  social  or  political  priv- 
ileges. They  were  frankly  accepted  as  leaders  and 
administrators  of  public  affairs,  as  magistrates,  bur- 
gesses, agents  to  England,  and  afterwards  as  deputies 
to  Congress,  governors,  generals,  and  presidents.  In 
these  capacities  they  proved  themselves  honest,  capa- 
ble, energetic,  not  dishonoring  the  memories  of  the 
worthies  of  England  from  whom  they  were  descended. " 
It  was  immediately  on  James  River,  where  most  of 
those  old  worthies  of  Virginia  settled,  "  whose  names 
are  now  the  property  of  history,"  that  Theodorick 
Bland,  the  earliest  ancestor  of  Theodorick  Bland 
Pry  or,  in  the  year  1654  purchased  the  estate  of  West- 
over,  afterwards  the  home  of  Colonel  William  Byrd, 
"who,  with  his  personal  graces,  his  literary  accom- 
plishments, and  his  distinguished  career,  resembles  a 
brilliant  star  set  in  the  early  skies  of  Virginia  history. " 
Theodorick  Bland  built  a  church,  and  gave  to  his 
county  ten  acres  of  land,  a  court-house,  and  a  prison. 
He  died  at  the  age  of  forty-one,  and  was  buried  in  the 


8  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

chancel  of  the  church  which  he  built.  The  church 
has  long  ago  disappeared,  but  a  tombstone  bearing  the 
following  inscription  remains  in  the  graveyard  at  West- 
over  : 

J.   S.  M. 

PRUDENTE   ET  EBUDITI  THEODORICI   BLAND,    ARMIG  : 
Qui  OBIIT  APRILIS  23o,  A.  D.  1671, 

^ETATIS  41. 

CUJUS  VIDUA  M^ESTISSIMA, 
FILIA    RICHARDI   BENNET,    ARMIG  : 

HOC    MARMOR    POSUIT. 

Which,  translated,  is  :  Jesus,  Savior  of  the  world. 
The  remains  of  the  wise  and  learned  Theodorick  Bland, 
Esq. ,  who  died  April  23d,  A.  D.  1671,  aged  41  :  whose 
most  disconsolate  widow,  a  daughter  of  Richard  Ben- 
net,  Esq. ,  erected  this  tomb. 

This  Theodorick  Bland  was  one  of  the  King's  Coun- 
cil for  Virginia,  and  was  both  in  fortune  and  under- 
standing inferior  to  no  person  of  his  time  in  the  coun- 
try. His  father-in-law,  Richard  Bennet,  was  gov- 
ernor of  the  colony.  He  left  three  sons,  Theodorick, 
Richard,  and  John. 

Richard  Bland  married  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Col. 
William  Randolph  of  Turkey  Island,*  and  died  at 
u  Jordan's,"  on  James  River,  leaving  five  children — 


*  Thomas  Jefferson  was  descended  from  Col.  William 
Randolph  of  Turkey  Island. 


THE    ELANDS. 

Mary,  Elizabeth,  Anna,  Theodorick,  and  Richard. 
Mary  Bland,  eldest  daughter  of  Richard  Bland,  mar- 
ried Col.  Robert  Lee,  of  Westmoreland,  and  was  the 
ancestress  of  Gen.  Robert  E.  Lee,  of  the  Confederate 
army.  Richard  Bland,  eldest  son  of  the  said  Rich- 
ard, died  at  "Jordan's,"  on  James  River,  October 
26th,  1776.  He  was  a  member  of  the  House  of  Dele- 
gates, and  was  pronounced  by  Mr.  Jefferson  to  be 
"the  wisest  man  south  of  James  River."  It  is  said 
of  him  that  "his  intellectual  calibre  was  capacious, 
his  education  finished,  his  habits  of  application  inde- 
fatigable. Thoroughly  versed  in  the  charters,  laws, 
and  history  of  the  colony,  he  was  styled  the  '  Virginia 
Antiquary. '  He  was  a  political  writer  of  the  first  rank, 
a  profound  logician,  and  as  a  writer  unsurpassed  in 
the  colony.  His  Letters  to  the  Clergy,  published  in 
1760,  and  his  Enquiry  into  the  Rights  of  the  Colonies, 
are  monuments  of  his  patriotism."  His  wife,  Anne 
Bland,  is  buried  by  his  side  at  "Jordan's."  She  was 
mentioned  in  the  family  record  as  "Anne,  only  daugh- 
ter of  Peter  Poythress,  gentleman." 

Theodorick,  youngest  son  of  Richard  Bland,  Sr. , 
lived  at  "  Causon's,"  a  noble  estate  near  the  mouth  of 
the  Appomattox  River.  He  was  twice  married — to 
Frances  Boiling  and  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Yates.  His  daugh- 
ter Frances  married  John  Randolph,  and  was  the 
mother  of  the  famous  orator,  John  Randolph  of  Roan- 
oke.  "  Col.  Theodorick  Bland  was  an  active  promoter 
of  the  Revolution.  When  Lord  Dunmore,  in  the 
spring  of  1775,  under  instructions  from  England,  un- 
dertook to  disarm  the  people,  '  by  secretly  withdraw- 


10  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

ing  the  muskets  and  powder  from  the  magazine  in 
Williamsburg,  Colonel  Bland  was  among  the  first  to 
rouse  the  country  to  resistance.  As  munitions  of  war 
were  scarce,  he,  his  son  Theodorick,  and  his  son-in- 
law,  John  Randolph,  purchased  powder  for  the  use  of 
the  colony.  Endowed  with  an  ample  fortune  and  a 
manly  character,  having  been  for  a  series  of  years  in 
succession  lieutenant  of  the  county  of  Prince  George, 
clerk  of  the  court,  and  representative  in  the  House  of 
Burgesses,  he  possessed  a  commanding  influence  among 
the  people.  His  house  was  the  center  of  a  wide  circle 
of  friends  and  relations,  all  of  whom  pledged  their 
lives,  fortunes,  and  sacred  honor  to  the  cause  of  inde- 
pendence. "  *  Of  his  second  marriage,  Col.  Bland  says, 
in  a  letter  to  his  son  :  ' '  The  person  I  have  thought  of  is 
a  lady  of  great  goodness,  sensible,  and  a  true  Whig."  t 
This  lady  was  the  great  great  great  grandmother  of  the 
subject  of  our  biography. 

Theodorick  Bland,  son  of  Colonel  Theodorick  Bland, 
was  sent  to  England  when  he  was  eleven  years  of  age, 
to  be  there  educated.  He  attended  a  school  in  Wake- 
field,  Yorkshire,  whence  the  head-master  wrote  to  his 
father :  "  Master  Bland  is  in  my  second  class,  and  reads 
Xenophon  and  Horace  with  tolerable  ease,  so  that  I 
should  think  he  would  soon  be  very  well  qualified  to  be 
a  member  at  Edinburg  ;  only  I  have  this  deficiency 
to  lament  in  all  the  boys — that  they  compose  most 
wretchedly,  particularly  in  their  Latin  exercises.  And 

*  See  Garland's  "Life  of  John  Randolph,"  vol.1,  pp.2,  3. 
t  See  "  Diary  of  Rev.  Theodorick  Pryor  of  Virginia," 
written  in  1830. 


THE    ELANDS.  11 

Master  Bland  (for  I  will  not  natter  you)  seems  to 
require  discipline  as  much  as  any  other  young  gentle- 
man." "  Master  Bland  "  preserved  his  translation  of 
the  first  Eclogue  of  Virgil,  which  is  still  extant.  It  is 
a  very  creditable  specimen  of  his  juvenile  performance 
in  that  line.  He  attended  the  infirmary  in  Liverpool 
as  a  student  of  medicine,  and  in  1761,  being  then 
nineteen  years  of  age,  he  repaired  to  Edinburg,  to 
pursue  the  study  of  his  profession  in  the  university. 
He  was  somewhat  under  the  supervision  of  a  Quaker 
relative,  John  Bland,  who  did  not  disdain  to  counsel 
him  in  love  matters.  This  old  gentleman,  in  a  letter 
dated  July,  1762,  observes  to  his  young  cousin  at 
Edinburg  :  "  I  will  write  to  thy  good  father  in  regard 
to  the  report  of  thyself  and  Miss  Miller,  and  doubt  not 
he  will  be  relieved  from  the  distress  he  suffered  in 
consequence  thereof.  This  matter  shows  thee  how 
circumspect  thou  ought  to  be. " 

It  seems  the  young  gentleman  had  requested  his 
father  to  send  him  a  negro  boy  to  act  as  his  valet  de 
ckambre,  for  his  Quaker  relative  adds :  "  I  will  be  glad 
to  hear  Tom  gets  down  well,  but  I  fear  he  will  elope 
from  thee  ;  and  indeed  I  cannot  but  wish  he  had  stayed 
in  Virginia,  where  he  might  most  probably  have  been 
a  good  servant." 

After  an  absence  of  twelve  years  young  Bland  re- 
turned to  Virginia,  and  practiced  his  profession  seven 
years.  From  the  cradle  his  constitution  was  delicate 
and  infirm,  and  his  strong  natural  inclination  was  for 
a  life  of  rural  quiet  and  studious  repose.  Yet  while 
he  fondly  meditated  a  life  of  perfect  seclusion,  he  was 


12  PEYOE:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

destined  to  take  an  active  part  in  the  Revolution  that 
ensued,  and  to  be,  from  the  commencement  of  the  war 
to  the  close  of  his  life,  either  in  the  military  or  civil  de- 
partment, continually  occupied  in  public  service.  In 
1776,  he  was  appointed  by  the  Convention  at  Williams- 
burg  captain  of  the  first  troop  of  Virginia  cavalry.  Six 
Virginia  companies  of  horse  were  incorporated  into 
one  in  1777,  and  Captain  Bland  being  appointed  their 
leader,  he  became  a  lieutenant-colonel.  Ambitious 
of  civic  and  literary  as  well  as  military  honors,  he  was 
at  the  same  time  member  of  the  Senate  of  Virginia 
and  founder  of  the  first  literary  society  that  was  ever 
organized  in  his  State. 

History  follows  Colonel  Bland  through  the  battle  of 
Brandy  wine,  the  camp  at  Whitemarsh,  Winchester, 
Va.,  Mount  Vernon,  Alexandria,  Baltimore,  North 
Carolina,  and  finally  to  Charlottesville,  Va. ,  where  he 
was  appointed  by  General  Washington  to  ' '  superintend 
the  troops  at  that  post."  He  corresponded  with  Gen- 
eral Washington  and  enjoyed  his  confidence  without 
abatement  or  interruption  to  the  end  of  his  life.  All 
of  Washington's  letters  would  interest  our  readers,  but 
we  can  only  give  one  or  two.  The  following,  written 
soon  after  the  battle  at  Germantown,  will  illustrate 
Washington's  ideas  with  regard  to  civilized  ' '  warfare  "  : 

"From  General  Washington  to  Colonel  Bland. 

"  HEADQUARTERS,  Oct.  25th,  1777. 

"SiR  : — I  am  sorry  to  find  that  the  liberty  I  have 
granted  to  the  light  dragoons  of  impressing  horses 
near  the  enemy's  lines  has  been  most  horridly  abused, 
and  perverted  into  a  mere  plundering  scheme.  I  in- 


THE    ELANDS.  13 

tended  nothing  more  than  that  the  horses  belonging 
to  the  disaffected,  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  British 
army,  should  be  taken  for  the  use  of  the  dismounted 
dragoons,  and  expected  that  they  would  be  regularly 
reported  to  the  QuartermasterTGeneral,  that  an  account 
might  be  kept  of  the  number  and  the  persons  from 
whom  they  were  taken,  in  order  to  a  future  settlement. 
Instead  of  this,  I  am  informed  that  under  pretence  of 
the  authority  derived  from  me,  they  go  about  the 
country  plundering  whomsoever  they  please,  convert- 
ing what  they  take  to  their  own  private  emolument. 
This  is  an  abuse  that  cannot  be  tolerated ;  and  as  I 
find  the  license  allowed  them  has  been  a  sanction  for 
such  mischievous  practices,  I  am  under  the  necessity 
of  recalling  it  altogether.  You  will  therefore  imme- 
diately make  it  known  to  your  whole  corps,  that  they 
are  not,  under  any  pretense  whatever,  to  meddle  with 
the  horses  or  other  property  of  any  inhabitants  what- 
ever, on  pain  of  the  severest  punishment ;  for  they  may 
be  assured,  as  far  as  it  depends  upon  me,  that  military 
execution  will  attend  all  those  who  are  caught  in  the 
like  practice  hereafter.  The  more  effectually  to  put  it 
out  of  their  power  to  elude  this  prohibition,  all  the 
horses  in  your  corps,  in  the  use  of  the  non-commis- 
sioned officers  and  privates,  not  already  stamped  with 
the  continental  brand,  are  without  loss  of  time  to  be 
brought  to  the  Quartermaster-General  to  receive  that 
brand,  and  henceforth  if  any  of  them  shall  be  found 
with  horses  that  are  without  it,  they  shall  be  tried  for 
marauding  and  disobedience  of  orders. 

4 'I  am,  sir,  your  most  obedient  servant, 

"GEO.  WASHINGTON." 


14  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

The  stern  virtue  expressed  in  the  above  will  be  the 
more  appreciated  when  we  remember  the  great  scarcity 
of  horses  at  that  time,  the  parties  sent  all  over  the 
country  to  recruit  them,  and  the  often  expressed 
embarrassment  at  their  failure.  General  Washington's 
letters  chronicle  mournfully  the  want  of  horses  and 
clothing  for  the  troops,  and  urge  Colonel  Bland  to  "pro- 
cure all  he  can  by  purchase  in  Virginia. "  In  another 
letter  he  says :  "I  have  understood  that  horses  have 
got  to  such  an  extravagant  price  that  it  is  in  vain  to 
think  of  procuring  but  very  few  for  dragoon  service." 
At  the  same  time  he  consults  Colonel  Bland  as  to  the 
best  mode  to  continue  the  soldiers  in  service,  hoping 
they  might  be  persuaded  by  the  officers  who  had  imme- 
diate influence  over  them.  In  1780,  Colonel  Bland  was 
appointed  by  the  Assembly  of  Virginia  a  delegate  in 
Congress.  His  congressional  notes,  speeches,  reports, 
etc.,  manifest  his  spirit  and  industry  in  the  public 
cause.  On  the  department  of  finance  he  bestowed 
particular  attention. 

The  Marquis  of  Chastellux,  in  his  travels,  makes  the 
following  mention  of  Colonel  Bland:  "My  evening 
terminated  by  a  visit  to  Colonel  Bland,  of  Virginia. 
He  is  a  tall,  handsome  man,  who  has  been  in  the  West 
Indies,  where  he  acquired  French.  He  is  said  to  be  a 
good  soldier,  but  at  present  serves  his  country,  and 
serves  it  well,  in  Congress.  I  was  invited  to  drink  tea 
at  Colonel  Bland's,  that  is  "to  say,  to  attend  a  sort  of 
assembly,  pretty  much  like  the  conversazione  of  Italy. 
Mr.  Howley,  Governor  of  Georgia,  Mr.  Izard,  Mr. 
Arthur  Lee,  (two  last  lately  arrived  from  Europe)  M. 


THE    ELANDS.  15 

de  la  Fayette,  M.  de  Noailles,  M.  de  Damas,  etc.,  were 
of  the  party."  * 

Colonel  Bland  was  also  a  member  of  the  convention 
that  met  June,  1788,  to  ratify  the  new  Constitution. 
He  was  a  friend  of  Patrick  Henry,  and  voted  with  him 
against  the  ratification  of  that  instrument.  On  its 
adoption,  however,  he  acquiesced  in  the  will  of  the 
majority,  and  was  elected  to  represent  his  district  in 
the  first  Congress  held  under  the  Constitution.  We 
make  an  extract  from  a  letter  written  by  General 
Washington  to  him,  and  dated, 

"NEWBURG,  N.  Y.,  4th  of  April,  1783. 

'*  DEAR  SIR  :  On  Sunday  last  the  Baron  de  Steuben 
handed  me  your  obliging  favor  of  the  22d  of  March. 
Permit  me  to  offer  you  my  unfeigned  thanks  for  the 
clear  and  candid  opinions  which  you  have  given  me  of 
European  politics. 

"  Peace  has  given  rest  to  speculative  opinions- respect- 
ing the  time  and  terms  of  it.  The  first  has  come  as 
soon  as  we  could  well  have  expected  it,  with  the  dis- 
advantages under  which  we  labored  ;  and  the  latter  is 
abundantly  satisfactory.  It  is  now  the  bounden  duty 
of  every  one  to  make  the  blessings  thereof  as  diffusive 
as  possible.  Nothing  would  so  effectually  bring  this 
to  pass  as  the  removal  of  those  local  prejudices  which 
intrude  upon  and  embarrass  that  great  line  of  policy 
which  alone  can  make  us  a  free,  happy,  and  powerful 
people.  Unless  our  union  can  be  fixed  upon  such  a 


*"  Travels  iu  North  America  in  1780-81-82,"  by  Chas- 
tellux. 


1 6  PRYOR  I    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

basis  as  to  accomplish  these,  certain  I  am  we  have  toiled, 
bled,  and  spent  our  treasure  to  very  little  purpose." 

Colonel  Bland  died  at  New  York,  June  1st,  1790, 
aged  forty-eight,  having  spent  a  short  but  eventful 
and  highly  useful  life.  He  was  a  member  of  Congress 
at  the  time  of  his  death.  In  person  he  is  said  to  have 
been  "tall  and  of  a  noble  countenance,  his  manners 
being  marked  by  ease,  dignity,  and  well-bred  repose. 
In  character  he  was  virtuous  and  enlight  ened,  of  ex- 
emplary purity  of  manners  and  integrity  of  conduct  ; 
estimable  for  his  private  worth  and  respectable  for  his 
public  services.  Animated  from  his  childhood  b'y  a 
profound  love  of  country,  with  him  patriotism  was  not 
an  impulse  but  a  principle."* 

*  See  Campbell's  "  Bland  Papers." 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE    PRYORS    AND    THE    RICES. 


"  Go  call  thy  sons, — instruct  them  what  a  debt 
They  owe  their  ancestors,  and  make  them  vow 
To  pay  it, — by  transmitting  down  entire 
Those  sacred  rights  to  which  themselves  were  born." 


HE  old  baronial  homes  of  the  Bland  family  were 
in  ruins  during  the  life  of  John  Randolph,  of 
Roanoke.  "  Westover  "  was  rebuilt  by  Colonel 
Byrd.  "  Causon's  "  was  burned,  as  also  "  Matoax  "  and 
"  Bizarre,"  the  residences  of  the  Randolphs.  For.  a 
long  time  armorial  bearings  from  the  gates  might  be 
picked  up  in  fragments  on  the  sites  of  the  old  homes, 
but  the  ' '  wild  pine  and  broom-sedge  have  made  steady 
encroachments.  The  early  and  noble  sons  of  Virginia 
are  all  gone,  their  hearths  cold,  their  fields  desolate."  * 
But  they  have  left  their  name  in  the  history  and  geogra- 
phy of  their  native  State.  Blandford,  a  village  once 
rivaling  Petersburg  in  its  growth,  but  since  incorporat- 

*  Garland's  "  Life  of  .Randolph." 


18  PRYOR  I    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

ed  with  the  latter,  received  its  name  from  this  family. 
The  "  old  Blandford  church,"  the  mother  church  of 
the  frontier,  still  remains — one  of  the  most  beautiful 
and  interesting  of  all  the  Virginia  ruins.  The  Blands, 
for  generation  after  generation,  worshiped  in  this  old 
church,  and  a  host  of  them  represented  the  family  as 
vestrymen.  ' '  The  building  continued  to  be  used  as  a 
place  of  worship  until  1802,  when,  Petersburg  having 
extended  westward,  the  inhabitants  determined  to  build 
another  church.  This  was  done,  Blandford  was  aban- 
doned, and  the  building  left  to  battle  with  storm,  and 
rain,  and  snow.  Age  and  these  hostile  influences  soon 
told  upon  it.  The  massive  walls,  with  their  covering 
of  ivy,  resisted  ;  but  slowly  the  windows,  doors,  pews, 
and  all  the  wood-work  disappeared,  leaving  the  edifice 
a  shell — the  ghost  of  its  former  self.  Such  it  appears 
to-day — a  venerable  memorial  of  the  past.  It  has  been 
visited  by  many  thousands  of  persons  ;  among  the  rest 
by  the  comedian  Tyrone  Power,  who  wrote  impromptu, 
with  his  lead-pencil,  the  subjoined  lines  on  the  eastern 
side  of  the  south  door  of  the  edifice.  For  twenty 
years  they  remained  quite  legible,  but  during  the  war 
some  sacrilegious  hand  scrawled  over  many  of  the  lines, 
so  defacing  them  as  to  render  them  entirely  illegible. 
They  were  written  as  follows  :  " 

"  Thou  art  crumbling  to  the  dust,  old  pile, 

Thou  art  hast'ning  to  thy  fall, 
And  round  thee  in  thy  loneliness 

Clings  the  ivy  to  thy  wall. 
The  worshippers  are  scattered  now, 

Who  knelt  before  thy  shrine, 
And  silence  reigns  where  anthems  rose 

In  '  days  of  auld  lang  syne.' 


THE    PRYORS    AND    THE    RICES.  19 

"And  sadly  sighs  the  wand'ring  wind, 

Where  oft  in  years  gone  by, 
Prayer  rose  from  many  hearts  to  Him — 

The  Highest  of  the  High. 
The  tread  of  many  a  noiseless  foot 

That  sought  thy  aisles  is  o'er, 
And  many  a  weary  heart  around 

Is  stilled  for  evermore. 

"  Though  oft  ambitious  hope  takes  wing, 

How  droops  the  spirit  now  ! 
We  hear  the  distant  city's  din — 

The  dead  are  mute  below. 
The  sun  that  shone  upon  their  path 

Now  gilds  their  lowly  graves, 
The  zephyr  which  once  fanned  their  brows 

The  grass  above  them  waves. 

"  Oh,  could  we  call  the  many  back, 

Who've  gathered  here  in  vain, 
W7ho've  careless  roved  where  we  do  now, 

Who'll  never  meet  again: 
How  would  our  very  hearts  be  stirred 

To  meet  the  earnest  gaze 
Of  the  lovely  and  the  beautiful — 
The  light  of  other  days  !  " 

•» 
"  Around  the  crumbling  walls,  and  sleeping  sweetly 

in  their  shadow,  lie  the  good  '  forefathers  of  the  hamlet 
of  Petersburg,'  whose  names  and  memories  would  have 
disappeared  but  for  the  half-erased  inscriptions  on  their 
tombs.  Over  these  moss-covered  tombstones,  the 
larch,  the  cedar,  and  the  pine  seem  to  keep  watch  and 
ward  ;  above  towers  the  ghostly  ruin  with  its  mantle 
of  ivy ;  and  the  melancholy  whippoorwill,  with  his 
plaintive  cry,  seems  to  be  the  genius  of  the  spot." 

The  first  member  of  the  Pryor  family  in  this  country 
came  from  England,  early  in  1700,  and  purchased  land 
in  Hanover  County,  Virginia.  This  was  John  Pryor, 
the  cotemporary  and  friend  of  Patrick  Henry,  and  of 


20  PRYOR  I    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

Wm.  B.  Giles,  of  Virginia.  He  was  an  enthusiastic 
farmer,  and  gave  his  name  to  the  best  brand  of  tobacco 
and  the  finest  variety  of  Virginia  apple.  He  was 
elected  to  several  places  of  trust  and  responsibility  in 
his  own  county,  but  took  no  prominent  part  in  the 
politics  of  the  day.  The  great  great  grandfather  of  the 
subject  of  our  narrative  was  the  Rev.  Theodorick  Bland, 
of  the  Established  Church.  His  son,  the  Rev.  William 
Bland,  (also  an  Episcopalian)  married  Elizabeth  Yates, 
daughter  of  the  President  of  William  and  Mary  Col- 
lege. Their  daughter,  Nancy  Bland,  married  Richard 
Pryor,  son  of  the  John  Pryor  mentioned  above.  Their 
son,  the  Rev.  Theodorick  Pryor,  grandfather  of  The- 
odorick Bland  Pryor,  is  now  a  venerable  minister  of 
the  Presbyterian  church  in  Virginia.  In  his  diary, 
written  in  1830,  he  says  :  "  To  me  it  is  a  source  of 
much  comfort  and  of  praise,  that,  in  looking  up  the 
long  line  of  my  forefathers,  I  find  so  many  Ministers 
of  the  Most  High  God.  I  can  claim  as  mine  the  pecu- 
liar mercies  whicli  belong  to  the  children  of  the  Cove- 
nant. I  can  rank  myself  among  the  children  of  the 
faithful,  and  plead  the  promises  which  are  appropriated 
to  such." 

Richard  Pryor,  after  his  marriage  to  Nancy  Bland 
settled  in  Nottoway,  Virginia.  Their  oldest  son,  the 
above  mentioned  Theodorick  Pryor,  D.  D. ,  married 
Lucy  Atkinson,  of  Dinwiddie.  Their  oldest  son,  Roger 
A.  Pryor,  married  Sara  Rice  ;  and  Theodorick  Bland 
Pryor,  the  subject  of  our  narrative,  was  the  oldest  son 
of  this  marriage.  The  Atkinsons  were  an  old  aristo- 
cratic English  family.  We  cannot  attempt  a  statement 


THE    PRYORS    AND    THE    RICES.  21 

of  their  complicated  genealogy,  including  the  names 
of  Poythress,  Bland,  and  Pleasants.  Many  members  of 
the  family  were  clergymen,  and  some  who  now  bear 
the  name  in  Virginia  are  able  and  esteemed  ministers 
of  the  gospel.  Lucy  Atkinson,  who  married  Dr.  Pryor, 
was  the  daughter  of  Mr.  Roger  Atkinson,  of  "  Olive 
Hill,"  Virginia,  a  man  still  remembered  as  remarkable 
for  his  strong  intellect,  perfect  integrity,  and  firm 
character. 

The  earliest  ancestor  of  Theodorick  Bland  Pryor,  on 
his  mother's  side,  who  came  to  this  country,  was 
Thomas  Rice,  an  Englishman  of  Welch  extraction. 
He  emigrated  to  Virginia  about  the  year  1680.  The 
name  in  Wales  was  "  Ap  Rhys."  He  purchased  a  farm 
in  Hanover,  and  returned  to  England  to  receive  a  large 
estate  which  had  been  left  him.  He  was  never  seen 
again.  The  sailors  reported  he  had  died  at  sea.  It 
was  supposed  that  he  was  assassinated.  No  return  of 
his  property  was  ever  made,  and  his  family  was  left 
destitute  in  a  strange  land.  One  of  his  sons,  David 
Rice,  was  the  father  of  Benjamin  Rice,  and  David  Rice, 
"the  Apostle  of  Kentucky."  Benjamin  Rice  was  the 
father  of  the  Rev.  John  Holt  Rice,  President  of  the 
Theological  Seminary  at  Hampden  Sidney.  John  H. 
Rice  was  a  very  great  and  good  man,  and  the  intimate 
friend  of  Dr.  Archibald  Alexander  and  others,  whose 
names  will  be  precious  as  long  as  the  Presbyterian 
Church  exists.  His  uncle,  Dr.  David  Rice,  from  whom 
Pryor  was  immediately  descended,  was  a  man  of  great 
ability  and  fervent  piety.  He  was  born  in  Hanover 
County,  December  29th,  1733.  He  spent  his  whole 
3 


22  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

life  in  the  study  of  the  Bible,  religious  exercises,  and 
earnest  work  for  his  fellow-man.  He  was  a  pioneer  in 
the  dissenting  movements  of  .his  time.  The  Episcopal 
Church  was  established  in  the  Dominion  by  law,  and 
remained  so  until  the  Revolution,  which  terminated  in 
American  independence.  Dr.  Rice  became  deeply  im- 
pressed by  reading  "Luther  on  the  Galatians,"  and 
Whitefield's  Sermons.  At  that  time  the  Established 
Church  offered  unusual  inducements  to  the  young 
clergyman.  It  was  under  special  protection  of  the 
Government,  every  minister  having  secured  to  him  the 
annual  salary  of  1800  weight  of  tobacco,  with  other 
perquisites  of  considerable  amount.  But  Dr.  Rice 
was  from  conviction  a  Presbyterian,  and  although,  as 
he  said,  "by  no  means  averse  to  the  worship  of  the 
Episcopal  Church,  he  could  not  in  conscience  take 
orders  in  that  church."*  The  good  Bishop  Kidder 
Meade  laments  this  disaffection,  and  pays  tribute  to  his 
ability  when  he  says,  in  "Old  Churches":  " David 
Rice  was  a  host  in  himself. "  He  removed,  when  quite 
a  young  man,  to  Kentucky,  where  he  founded  and  built 
the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  where  he  labored  un- 
ceasingly for  the  advancement  of  religion  until  he 
died,  at  the  ripe  age  of  eighty-three. 

His  wife,  Mary  Blair,  was  daughter  of  the  Rev. 
Samuel  Blair,  of  Pennsylvania.  Her  biographer  says  : 
' c  She  was  a  woman  of  uncommon  strength  of  mind, 
and  most  cheerfully  brought  the  resources  of  her  mind 
into  action.  The  heart  of  her  husband  did  safely  trust 
in  her.  She  did  him  good  and  not  evil  all  the  days  of 

*" Memoirs  of  Dr.  Rice." 


THE    PBYOKS    AND    THE    RICES.  23 

her  life.  Nor  was  she  merely  an  help-meet  for  him 
with  respect  to  this  world.  Having  herself  enjoyed  a 
full  and  systematic  religious  education,  and  being  blest 
with  a  considerable  genius,  a  taste  for  reading  and  a 
mind  habituated  to  reflection,  she  had  acquired  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  doctrines  and  the  duties  of  Christianity 
beyond  many.  She  professed  great  influence  over  her 
friends,  and  wrote  many  letters  on  the  necessity  and 
importance  of  religion."  So  deep  an  impression  did 
she  make  on  her  son,  William  Rice,  that  he  requested 
that  her  name  should  be  perpetuated  in  all  succeeding 
generations,  a  request  which  has  been  respected  to  the 
present  day. 

The  Rices  were  an  earnest  and  grave  race  of  people, 
studious  and  thoughtful.  They  boasted  of  no  aristo- 
cratic blood,  until  it  was  mingled  with  the  Bacons  and 
Henshaws  by  the  marriage  of  William  Rice  to  Miss 
Henshaw,  of  Virginia.  She  was  a  lineal  descendent 
of  the  Nathaniel  Bacons,  senior  and  junior,  who  gave 
Sir  William  Berkeley  such  trouble  in  the  early  history 
of  Virginia,  and  who  in  their  turn  claimed  kinship 
with  the  great  Lord  Bacon  of  England.  Nathaniel 
Bacon's  name  still  exists  among  his  descendants  in 
Virginia,  and  the  site  of  one  of  their  great  estates, 
"  Bacon's  Quarter,"  is  still  known  near  Richmond. 
Dr.  William  Rice  was  the  worthy  son  of  his  father, 
' '  the  Apostle  of  Kentucky. ' '  He  was  a  man  of  digni- 
fied bearing  and  classical  culture.  His  home  in  Char- 
lotte, Virginia,  was  near  that  of  his  friend  and  neigh- 
bor, Patrick  Henry,  and  their  graves  are  but  a  short 
distance  from  each  other. 

To  return,  Roger  A.   Pry  or,  the  father  of  Theodo- 


24  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

rick  Bland  Pryor,  was  a  Virginian  by  birth,  and  re- 
ceived his  education  in  that  State.  He  graduated  at 
Hampden  Sidney,  and  the  University  of  Virginia.  He 
achieved  distinction  in  both  colleges,  prepared  himself 
for  law,  and  married  before  he  was  twenty-one.  In  a 
book  recently  published  in  New  York,  entitled  "  Biog- 
raphies of  Distinguished  National  Men,"  we  find  the 
following  notice  of  him  :  "  In  1851-52-53  and  '54,  Mr. 
Pryor  edited  the  Washington  Union  and  Richmond 
Enquirer,  having  relinquished  the  practice  of  law  on 
account  of  his  health.  In  1855,  he  was  appointed  by 
Mr.  Pierce  Special  Minister  to  Greece,  to  adjust  cer- 
tain difficulties  with  that  country,  originating  in  the 
persecution  of  Rev.  Dr.  King,  American  Consul  and 
Missionary.  In  1859,  he  was  elected  to  the  thirty- 
sixth  Congress,  and  was  re-elected  to  the  thirty-seventh 
Congress,  but  was  among  those  who  were  prominent 
in  the  secession  movement.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Provisional  Congress  of  the  Southern  Confederacy,  and 
was  conspicuous  among  those  who  aided  in  the  forma- 
tion of  the  new  government.  He  was  elected  to  the 
regular  Congress  of  the  Southern  States,  but  resigned 
his  position  to  enter  the  Confederate  army,  and  was 
appointed  Colonel.  He  was  promoted  as  Brigadier- 
General,  and  served  in  the  army  of  Northern  Virginia 
until  1864,  when,  resigning  his  rank  on  account  of  a 
difference  with  Jefferson  Davis,  he  served  as  a  private 
until  the  end  of  the  war.  Removing  to  New  York 
city  in  1865,  he  settled  as  a  lawyer,  and  at  once  took  a 
prominent  position  at  the  Bar,  where  he  was  advanced 
to  distinction  and  a  lucrative  practice.  In  Congress, 


THE    PRYORS    AND    THE    RICES.  25 

General  Pry  or  was  distinguished  as  a  ready  debater, 
and  took  a  leading  part  in  all  the  stormy  legislation 
preceding  the  war.  Eschewing  politics  since,  he  has 
devoted  himself  exclusively  to  his  profession,  and  mak- 
ing many  friends  among  his  new  associates,  both  in 
and  out  of  his  profession,  General  Pry  or  has  a  fair  field 
before  him  for  future  promotion  and  distinction." 

This  notice,  though  written  by  a  stranger,  is  in  the 
main  correct.  But  if  we  may  judge  from  a  speech  of 
Mr.  Pry  or 's,  which  was  delivered  in  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives, in  February,  1861,  we  would  consider  the 
state  of  his  mind  in  that  agitated  hour  to  be  calm,  tem- 
perate, and  fully  alive  to  all  the  calamities  and  guilt  of 
civil  war.  He  closed  his  argument  in  these  words  : 
lt  Not  for  ourselves  alone  do  we  deprecate  a  conflict  of 
arms  ;  but  from  respect  to  the  memory  of  our  common 
ancestry  ;  for  the  sake  of  a  land  to  be  rent  by  the  cruel 
lacerations  of  the  sword  ;  and  in  reverence  of  virtues 
which  a  benign  religion  instructs  us  to  adore.  By  the 
persuasion  of  these  pious  and  persuasive  importunities 
we  would  soothe  in  every  breast  the  spirit  of  strife,  and 
invoke  the  pacific  intervention  of  reason  for  the  adjust- 
ment of  our  disputes."  From  this  whole  speech  we 
judge  General  Pryor  to  have  been  one  of  those  who 
avoid  "  entrance  into  a  quarrel,"  and  we  have  also 
reason  to  believe  that  "  being  in,"  no  man  was  ever 
more  earnest,  zealous,  and  self-denying. 

Such  were  the  men  from  whom  the  subject  of  this 
memoir  was  sprung,  and  we  have  given  them  not  to 
prove  the  nobility  of  his  ancestry,  but  to  trace  that 
line  which,  remarkable  as  it  is,  owes  new  luster  to  his 
great  scholastic  achievements. 


CHAPTER  III. 

CHILDHOOD    AT    CHARLOTTES- 
YILLE. 

"Then  time  flies  fast,  while  laughing  childhood  throws 
Hands-full  of  roses  at  him  as  he  goes  : 
And  all  the  future,  like  a  lake  is  spread, 
A  calm  expanse  beneath  hope's  angel  tread  : 
Home  is  his  realm  ;  his  throne,  a  mother's  knee  ; 
His  crown,  her  smile,  bent  o'er  him  lovingly." 

— Furness. 

HEODORICK  BLAND  pRYOR,jR.,wasborn 

July  8th,  1851,  at  "Rock  Hill,"  near  Char- 
lottes ville,  Virginia,  and  not  far  from  Monti- 
cello,  the  home  of  Jefferson.  His  mother  perceiving 
that  he  was  a  "goodly  child,"  gave  him  the  honored 
name  of  the  ancient  family  from  which  he  sprung.  As 
an  infant,  his  personal  beauty  was  remarkable,  his 
body  being  entirely  without  mark,  spot,  or  blemish, 
insomuch  that  his  old  colored  nurses  delighted  in  him 
as  a  royal  specimen  of  infantile  loveliness. 

In  order  that  he  might  breathe  the  pure  mountain 
air,  and  be  reared  with  his  sister  under  the  care  of  their 
grandmother,  the  earlier  years  of  his  life  were  spent  in 


28  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

his  native  town.  The  home  of  his  childhood  was  a  per- 
fect Eden.  The  scenery  around  Charlottesville  is  sur- 
passingly lovely,  "  presenting  a  mixture  of  mountains, 
fields,  woodlands,  and  running  streams,  combined  into 
a  landscape  of  quiet,  but  uncommon  beauty."*  The 
town  commands  a  view  of  the  Blue  Ridge,  stretching 
away  to  the  north  and  south  for  a  hundred  and  fifty 
miles,  and  brings  under  the  eye  one  of  the  boldest  and 
most  beautiful  horizons  in  the  world  ;  while  on  the 
east,  it  presents  an  extent  of  prospect  bounded  only  by 
the  spherical  form  of  the  earth,  in  which  nature  seems 
to  sleep  in  eternal  repose,  as  if  to  form  one  of  the  finest 
contrasts  with  the  rude  and  rolling  grandeur  of  the 
west.  Washington  Irving  writes  lovingly  of  the ' i  atmos- 
pheric tints  "  of  his  own  dear  Catskills,  and  claims  them 
as  their  peculiar  attraction.  The  changes  in  the  color- 
ing of  the  Blue  Ridge  are  as  lovely  and  bewildering. 
Sometimes  they  are  bathed  in  a  dense  blue  light,  then 
warm  pink  or  purple,  and  again  flooded  with  gold. 
Randall,  in  his  "  Life  of  Jefferson,"  did  not  fail  to 
notice  and  record  these  beautiful  illusions.  "  The  Blue 
Ridge,  near  Monticello,  exhibits  a  phenomenon  which 
is  very  striking.  To  one  unacquainted  with  these  opti- 
cal illusions,  they  bring  unutterable  amazement.  It  is 
as  if  he  had  stepped  into  a  land  of  enchantment,  where, 
according  to  the  superstitions  of  past  ages,  necroman- 
cers or  genii  were  sporting  with  the  forms  and  consis- 
tencies of  the  solid  globe.  And  what  must  have  been 
the  emotions  of  the  former  Indian  inhabitants — the 

*  Randall's  "Life  of  Jefferson." 


CHILDHOOD    AT    CHARLOTTESVILLE.  29 

wild  and  roving  Tuscarora,  whose  hunting  grounds  em- 
braced this  region — as  he  paused,  startled,  in  the  morn- 
ing chase,  to  witness  these  tremendous  transfigurations 
of  the  most  massive  and  immovable  objects  in  nature." 

A  writer  in  the  Southern  Literary  Messenger  gives 
the  following  glowing  description  of  a  trip  to  the  peaks 
which  formed  the  western  wall  of  the  landscape  around 
Pryor's  early  home.  "  On  one  side,  towards  Eastern 
Virginia,  lay  a  comparatively  level  country,  in  the  dis- 
tance, bearing  a  strong  resemblance  to  the  ocean  ;  on 
the  other  hand  were  ranges  of  high  mountains,  inter- 
spersed with  cultivated  spots,  and  then  terminating  in 
piles  of  mountains,  following  in  successive  ranges,  until 
they  were  lost  also  in  the  haze.  Above  and  below,  the 
Blue  Ridge  ran  off  in  long  lines,  sometimes  relieved 
by  knolls  and  peaks,  and  in  one  place  above  us  making 
a  graceful  curve,  and  then  running  off  in  a  different 
line  of  direction.  Very  near  us  stood  the  rounded  top 
of  another  peak,  looking  like  a  sullen  sentinel  for  its 
neighbor.  We  paused  in  silence  for  a  time.  We  were 
there,  almost  cut  off  from  the  world  below,  standing 
where  it  was  fearful  even  to  look  down.  There  was 
almost  a  sense  of  pain  at  the  stillness  which  seemed  to 
reign.  Towards  the  direction  of  our  morning's  ride, 
we  had  beneath  us  Albemarle  County,  with  its  farms 
and  farm-houses,  the  village  of  Charlottesville,  and  its 
ancient  university,  Monticello,  cut  out  of  the  hillside, 
and  afar  off  in  Buckingham  County,  the  lone  summit 
of  Willis'  Mountain." 

In  these  scenes  of  loveliness,  Pry  or  passed  much  of 
his  childhood.  To  the  judicious  training  and  Chris- 


30  PRYOR :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

tian  faithfulness  of  those  who  had  charge  of  him  during 
these  years,  he  was  indebted  for  the  preservation  of  his 
rare  symmetry  of  mental  and  moral  character,  and  for 
its  full  and  delightful  development.  Unusually  gentle 
and  retiring,  even  for  a  child,  he  shunned  the  boister- 
ous companionship  of  the  village  boys,  and  clung  to 
his  home,  contented  with  its  quiet  occupations  and 
satisfied  with  its  enjoyments.  From  the  extraordinary 
quickness  and  precocity  which  distinguished  him,  more 
than  usual  encouragement  was  given  to  the  instillation 
of  the  elements  of  religious  knowledge,  and  advantage 
was  duly  taken  of  his  docile  and  inquisitive  disposition 
to  direct  his  attention  to  the  most  important  of  all  sub- 
jects. To  his  grandmother  he  was  indebted  to  a  degree 
that  cannot  be  fully  ascertained  in  this  world.  Under 
her  guidance,  his  mind  was  early  and  richly  stored 
with  divine  truth,  the  full  benefit  of  which  did  not 
appear  at  the  time,  but  afterwards.  Those  principles 
were  implanted  and  strengthened,  which  tended  to 
preserve  him  when  exposed  to  temptations  in  after 
life,  and  his  moral  feelings  cultivated  to  such  a  degree 
of  sensitiveness  as  to  be  incapable  of  bearing  what  was 
evil,  and  of  relishing,  in  the  most  exquisite  manner,  all 
that  was  lovely,  and  pure,  and  excellent. 

From  earliest  childhood  an  elder  sister  was  his  only 
companion,  and  to  her  we  are  principally  indebted  for 
the  history  of  the  first  eleven  years  of  his  life.  "  When 
a  little  fellow,  only  three  or  four  years  of  age,"  she 
writes,  "he  used  to  cower  with  me  in  the  corners, 
taking  a  fearful  pleasure  in  telling  and  hearing  the  most 
awful  ghost  stories  which  our  imaginations  could  fur- 


CHILDHOOD    AT    CHARLOTTE  SVILLE.  31 

nish.  Both  learned  to  read  at  an  early  age,  and  by  no 
means  confining  ourselves  to  children's  books,  we  ven- 
tured upon  many  things,  which,  but  dimly  compre- 
hended, took  us  very  far  into  the  region  of  the  mys- 
terious. I  remember  especially  Theodorick's  lying 
awake  at  night  through  fear  of  the  witches  of  Macbeth, 
and  his  firm  conviction  that  our  large  old  house  was 
haunted." 

He  was  only  five  years  old  when  the  Crimean  war 
engrossed  his  attention.  At  that  time  he  was  visiting 
his  mother  at  Petersburg,  and  amused  himself  by 
making  a  panorama  of  the  events  of  the  war,  which 
was  considered  a  wonderful  production  by  his  little 
cousins.  Every  day  he  would  learn  the  last  news  from 
Sebastopol,  beg  a  sheet  of  foolscap,  and  add  to  his 
panorama.  At  last  he  rolled  it  into  a  box,  and  exhib- 
ited it,  illuminated  by  a  candle,  with  all  the  manner  of 
a  lecturer.  About  this  time  his  father  was  a  candidate 
for  Congress,  and  the  little  fellow  entered  with  ardor 
into  all  the  questions  of  the  hour.  On  election  day, 
he  was  early  at  the  polls,  and  selecting  a  commanding 
position,  exulted  in  the  votes  cast  for  his  father.  He 
was  an  ardent  lover  of  play,  and  delighted  in  mock 
battles  with  wild  animals,  and  in  enacting  thrilling 
scenes  from  English  history. 

"  At  seven  years  of  age,"  his  sister's  narrative  con- 
tinues, "  he  had  read  many  fairy  tales,  and  we  then 
entered  upon  what  might  be  called  a  series  of  illustra- 
tive plays,  acting  out  with  paper  dolls  and  wooden 
soldiers,  first  the  stories  we  read,  then  romances  of  our 
own  invention.  The  one  which  I  recall  most  clearly 


32  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

extended  through  a  whole  summer.  The  scene  was 
a  low,  broad  window-seat,  in  which  we  built  palaces  of 
books,  decorating  the  grounds  with  grasses  and  flowers. 
His  reverence  for  religion  commenced  when  he  was 
very  young,  for  I  remember  how  carefully  the  Bible 
was  always  removed  from  among  the  books  we  used  in 
our  play.  I  am  surprised  now  at  the  clearness  and 
interest  with  which  his  mind  invented  and  carried  on 
a  plot  far  more  involved  than  that  of  many  a  modern 
novel.  The  hero  and  heroine  were  the  objects  of  much 
conspiracy,  peril,  and  even  enchantment.  Day  after 
day,  with  unflagging  zeal,  did  he  invent  and  surmount 
new  difficulties  in  the  way  of  the  happy  completion  of 
the  story.  During  the  summer,  some  one  gave  him  a 
bag  of  colored  marbles,  which,  instead  of  devoting  to 
their  legitimate  uses,  he  immediately  wove  into  the 
tale,  making  them  the  gods  and  goddesses  of  a  most 
extraordinary  mythology,  and  heightening  the  perplex- 
ity of  the  play  by  supposing  hero  and  heroine  to  be  of 
different  religions.  If  I  remember  correctly,  autumn 
leaves  had  taken  the  place  of  spring  violets  around  our 
palaces  before  the  story  closed. 

"A  few  months  later,  '  Abbott's  Histories'  and 
'  Hollo's  Tour  in  Europe  '  took  the  place  of  fairy  tales 
and  the  l  Arabian  Nights,'  and  our  favorite  plays  were 
modified  accordingly.  Our  days  were  spent  in  con- 
structing a  miniature  Holland  on  the  banks  of  a  little 
rivulet,  and  in  climbing  the  mountains  around  our 
home,  giving  to  almost  every  rock  and  hill  some  Euro- 
pean name.  With  much  patience  and  difficulty,  he 
built  a  little  village  of  rocks,  on  a  steep  hillside,  to 


CHILDHOOD    AT    CHARLOTTESVILLE.  33 

imitate  the  Swiss  chalets,  copying  as  nearly  as  possible 
the  pictures  he  had  seen. 

"  For  the  amusement  of  the  long  winter  evenings, 
he  instituted  historical  tableaux,  selecting,  unassisted, 
impressive  scenes,  principally  from  the  lives  of  the 
great  men  in  whom  he  was  most  interested.  Of  these 
I  remember  particularly  '  The  Execution  of  Charles  I,' 
1  The  Coronation  of  Napoleon,'  l  Lady  Jane  Grey  Re- 
ceiving the  Crown,'  '  The  Execution  of  Mary,  Queen  of 
Scots,'  i  Pocahontas  and  Captain  Smith,'  and  l  The 
Death  of  Marshal  Ney. '  He  delighted,  too,  in  mimic 
battles.  If  out  of  doors,  a  pile  of  stones  would  be  a 
fort,  behind  which  one  of  us  would  take  position,  while 
the  other  assailed  it  with  turf,  corn-stalks,  etc.  In  the 
house  we  substituted  a  chair  and  newspapers.  He 
never  failed  to  become  greatly  excited,  and  having 
found  somewhere  a  book  of  military  tactics,  he  always 
planned  his  movements  in  accordance  with  rule  and 
precedent.  He  usually  adopted  the  name  of  whoever 
happened  to  be  his  favorite  hero  at  the  time,  and 
would  give  to  his  playmates  the  titles  of  his  own  con- 
temporaries. 

"  In  all  of  these  amusements,  he  showed  much  fer- 
tility of  invention,  and  great  fixedness  of  purpose, 
never  abandoning  an  idea  until  he  had  carried  it  out  to 
his  perfect  satisfaction.  Associating  at  that  time  with 
few  children  of  his  own  age,  his  books  were  his  con- 
stant companions,  and  we  lived  in  an  ideal  world,  with 
characters  of  history,  fairies,  enchanters,  ghosts,  and 
dragons,  as  the  familiar  friends  of  e very-day  life.  I  do 
not  know  how  or  when  he  became  interested  in  astron- 


34  PRYOR  I    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

omy,  but  I  remember,  when  we  were  spending  a  day  or 
two  with  a  large  family  of  children,  the  great  amuse- 
ment of  the  older  people  on  finding  that  he  had 
arranged  us  all  to  represent  the  solar  system,  while  he, 
with  a  long  train  of  newspapers  pinned  behind,  darted 
erratically  among  us  all  in  the  role  of  a  comet. 

"Unlike  many  children,  he  always  thoroughly  en- 
joyed the  services  of  church  and  Sunday  school.  The 
first  text  he  ever  read  or  learned  was,  '  Keep  thy  foot 
when  thou  goest  to  the  house  of  God,  and  be  more 
ready  to  hear  than  to  give  the  sacrifice  of  fools  ;  for 
they  consider  not  that  they  do  evil. '  He  often  repeated 
it,  and  his  earnest,  reverent  attention  in  the  place  of 
prayer  was  noticed  by  all. 

"  We  were  frequently  separated  during  the  following 
four  years,  and  except  that  his  thirst  for  knowledge 
increased,  I  can  recall  but  little.  He  commenced  his 
school-life  under  Mrs.  Buel,  the  widow  of  a  missionary 
to  China,  and  although  this  lady's  experience  with 
children  had  not  resulted  in  any  very  high  appreciation 
of  their  characteristics,  she  was  impelled  to  say  of  him, 
1  Little  Theodorick  is  perfect ! '  All  through  life,  at 
every  school,  at  home  and  abroad,  this  continued  to 
be  his  record,  so  that  in  looking  back,  his  early  friends 
and  relatives  can  but  feel  that  they  entertained  an 
angel  unawares." 


CHAPTER  IV. 

SCHOOL-LIFE. 

"  Now  take  the  germ  and  make  it 

A  bud  of  moral  beauty.    Let  the  dews 
Of  knowledge,  and  the  light  of  virtue,  wake  it 
In  richest  fragrance  and  in  purest  hues." 

— John  Bowring. 

;  SOUND  mind  in  a  sound  body  was  Pryor's 
birthright,  and  all  the  circumstances  of  his  early 
life  were  well  calculated  for  the  preservation 
and  full  development  of  both.  During  those  ten  years 
spent  in  his  early  mountain  home,  his  intellect,  which 
in  different  keeping  would  most  probably  have  been 
overfed,  was  carefully  provided  with  food  convenient 
for  it,  while  his  daily  life  was  of  such  a  character  as  to 
develop  and  strengthen  all  his  bodily  powers.  Provid- 
ing in  a  great  measure  for  his  own  amusement,  his  own 
genius  furnished  his  playthings.  The  field  of  his  opera- 
tions was  so  large  as  always  to  furnish  some  unexplored 
ground  and  some  new  diversion.  "  Summer's  sun 
browned  and  crimsoned  his  fair  skin,  and  its  winds 
played  with  his  hair.  The  ice  and  snow  of  winter  was 


36  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

his  wonder  and  pastime."  His  young  hands  and  feet 
were  always  employed  in  healthful,  active  play,  or 
errands  of  love.  He  went  to  bed  sleepy  and  rose 
refreshed. 

In  all  boys  we  discover  some  propensity,  some  irre- 
sistible attraction.  Their  minds  run,  we  say,  in  that 
direction,  and  they  creep  or  lie  still  if  turned  in  another. 
The  secret  of  this  bent  is  hidden  as  deeply  from  those 
who  have  it  as  from  those  who  have  it  not.  They  can- 
not think  otherwise  than  so,  and  to  this  exercise  have 
been  provoked  by  every  influence  in  life.  The  boy 
who  is  an  organized  arithmetic  and  geometry,  will 
count  all  the  hills  of  potatoes  and  reckon  the  kernels 
of  corn  in  a  bushel,  and  his  triangles  soon  begin  to 
cover  the  barn-door.  He  sees  nothing  but  number 
and  dimension  ;  he  feeds  on  these,  another  boy  on 
apples  and  nuts.  But  his  brother  loves  application  of 
force,  builds  wheels  and  mills  ;  his  head  is  full  of  cogs, 
and  levers,  and  eccentrics  ;  and  after  he  has  gone  out 
to  his  engineering  in  the  great  machine-shop  of  a  mod- 
ern world,  the  old  loft  at  home  is  lumbered  with  his 
mysterious  contrivances,  studies  for  a  self -impelling 
or  gravitating  machine,  and  perpetual  motion.  While 
still  another  boy  is  fired  with  the  mystery  of  form,  and 
paints  faces  on  the  wheels  of  his  mechanical  brother. 
Genius  is  prophetic — an  anticipation  of  the  manhood 
into  which  the  boy  is  maturing. 

The  peculiar  bent  of  Pryor's  mind  was  evident  to  all 
long  before  he  was  sent  regularly  to  any  school,  or  was 
influenced  by  any  particular  teacher.  But  when  a 
pupil,  roused,  enchanted,  and  fired  in  his  ambitious 


SCHOOL-LIFE.  37 

struggles  toward  the  goal  of  his  hope,  the  promise  of 
the  man  was  most  clearly  read  in  every  act  of  the  boy. 
The  influences  under  which  he  was  reared  were  such 
as  to  make  him  eminently  bookish  ;  and  his  mental 
peculiarities  now  and  later  exhibit  the  shape  of  the 
mould  in  which  his  intellect  was  cast.  The  crown  re- 
vealed to  him  as  the  object  for  which  to  study  and 
labor,  was  that  culture  which  marks  the  complete 
scholar.  His  whole  life  is  an  example  of  what  can  be 
accomplished  in  the  way  of  mental  culture,  when  the 
highest  possible  degree  of  perfection  is  made  the  busi- 
ness of  life.  From  his  earliest  years,  he  was  scholarly 
in  his  tastes  and  chosen  pursuits.  At  ten  years  of  age, 
he  was  a  "  student  "  in  the  highest  sense  of  that  word. 
His  daily  life  was  clearly  governed  by  an  intelligent 
desire,  ever  fully  before  his  mind,  to  become  a  scholar. 
His  natural  inclinations  were  strongly  mathematical, 
but  he  did  not  earlier  in  life  pursue  this  branch  of 
study  to  the  neglect  of  others. 

He  was  in  his  eleventh  year,  when  he  was  entered 
as  a  pupil  in  the  school  of  S.  W.  Goodson,  at  Smithfield, 
in  Isle  of  Wight  County,  Virginia,  a  town  situated 
"  on  an  elevated  bank  on  the  margin  of  Pagan  Creek, 
a  bold  and  navigable  stream,  commanding  a  beautiful 
view  of  both  land  and  water  scenery."  During  the 
few  months  spent  at  this  school,  he  established  the 
reputation  which  we  have  already  claimed  for  him,  and 
won  the  hearty  love  of  his  teacher  and  companions  ; 
for  while  his  superior  intellectual  attainments  com- 
manded their  admiration,  the  amiable  simplicity  and 
guileless  innocence,  which  formed  such  predominating 
4 


38  PRYOR  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

features  in  his  character,  necessarily  claimed  their  love. 
His  instructor  furnishes  this  testimony  :  "If  strict 
attention  to  study,  and  the  faithful  discharge  of  every 
duty,  can  endear  a  pupil  to  his  teacher,  then  I  have 
sufficient  grounds  upon  which  to. rest  my  affection  for 
him  ;  for  at  no  time,  nor  under  any  circumstances,  did 
he  ever  fail  to  do  his  whole  duty. 

1 1  Well  do  I  remember  when  I  first  met  him  in  the 
school-room.  As  I  gazed  upon  his  erect  carriage,  his 
fair,  manly  brow,  and  sparkling  eyes,  the  conviction 
forced  itself  upon  me  that  no  ordinary  material  had 
been  entrusted  to  my  care,  no  ordinary  mind  to  direct 
and  train.  The  dullest  observer  could  not  fail  to  see 
in  his  countenance  the  indications  of  intellectual  vigor, 
indomitable  energy,  firm  purpose,  and  grand  and  high 
resolve.  He  had  not  been  long  under  my  instruction 
before  he  displayed  the  most  noble  qualities  of  heart 
that  I  have  ever  seen  in  any  boy,  young  or  old.  Young 
as  he  was,  he  took  up  his  English  and  Latin  Grammar 
at  the  same  time,  along  with  the  other  usual  elemen- 
tary studies,  and  to  the  best  of  my  knowledge,  he  never 
missed  a  lesson.  I  never  assigned  him  any  particular 
task,  but  always  told  him  to  do  as  much  as  he  could, 
and  his  performances,  in  many  instances,  were  abso- 
lutely wonderful.  He  passed  rapidly  from  one  class  to 
another,  till  he  stood  solitary  and  alone,  the  acknowl- 
edged champion  of  the  school,  unimitated,  inimitable  ! 
He  seemed  to  realize,  even  at  that  early  age,  that 
'  knowledge '  was  a  deep  hidden  treasure,  the  posses- 
sion of  which  demanded  his  earnest,  constant  toil. 
And  oh  !  how  earnestly  he  toiled  !  If  there  is  on  earth 


SCHOOL-LIFE.  39 

one  sight  more  interesting  than  another  to  me,  it  is  to 
see  a  boy  intensely  earnest  in  the  pursuit  of  knowl- 
edge. I  enjoyed  that  pleasure  while  Pry  or  was  my 
pupil.  I  regret  to  say  that  I  have  never  enjoyed  it 
since,  though  I  have  had  some  quite  studious  boys.  I 
have  often  thonght,  what  a  delightful  task  teaching 
would  be  if  all  children  were  like  him.  Never  did 
miner  dig  for  gold  with  more  zeal  than  young  Pryor 
for  knowledge.  In  memory,  I  can  see  him  now,  as 
plainly  as  if  it  were  yesterday,  with  that  intense,  earn- 
est gaze,  that  wrapt  attention  which  nothing  could 
distract. 

' '  I  recollect  no  particular  incident  illustrative  of  his 
marked  traits  of  character,  except  one,  perhaps,  show- 
ing his  extreme  sensitiveness,  his  pride,  and  high  sense 
of  honor.  On  one  occasion,  I  was  so  unfortunate  as 
to  reprove  him  for  something  for  which  he  was  in  no 
degree  responsible,  and  it  had  such  an  effect  on  him, 
that  I  would  have  given  anything  to  have  been  able  to 
recall  it.  I  thought  it  would  break  his  manly  little 
heart,  and  it  taught  me  a  lesson,  which  I  trust  1  may 
never  forget,  viz:  never  to  attempt  reproof  till  I  have 
learned  the  disposition  of  the  child.  In  most  children, 
the  strong  points  of  character  are  not  known  until 
some  incident  reveals  them  to  us.  Pryor's  were  always 
prominent.  There  was  no  mistaking  them.  His  future 
could  have  been  as  easily  predicted  at  ten  as  at  twenty. 

* '  That  he  possessed  all  the  qualities  of  a  great  and 
good  man,  his  daily  life  was  a  living  demonstration.  I 
predicted  for  him  a  glorious  future,  and  my  sanguine 
heart  looked  forward  to  the  time  when  he  would  be  not 


40  I»RYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

only  the  pride  of  his  parents,  but  the  pride  of  his  coun- 
try. I  watched  his  career  with  an  interest  known  only 
to  myself,  and  to  my  pupils,  before  whom  I  have  been 
proud-to  place  him  as  an  example,  in  the  highest  degree 
worthy  of  their  imitation.  I  rejoiced  to  hear,  from 
time  to  time,  of  his  greater  triumphs  in  more  exten- 
sive fields,  and  looked  with  increased  confidence  to  the 
fulfilment  of  my  prophecy.  But  alas  !  how  inscruta- 
ble are  the  ways  of  Providence.  The  ignorant,  the 
low,  and  the  grovelling  are  spared  ;  the  noble,  the  true, 
and  the  gifted  are  taken  away  !  " 

Shortly  after  leaving  Mr.  Goodson's  school,  Pry  or 
became  the  pupil  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  William  J.  Hoge, 
near  his  native  town.  Dr.  Hoge's  school  was  one  of  a 
peculiar  character  and  constitution.  Having  left  his 
church,  in  New  York,  on  account  of  troubles  arising 
from  the  war,  he  removed  to  the  neighborhood  of  Char- 
lottesville,  with  his  family,  and  there  superintended 
the  education  of  his  children.  As  a  particular  favor, 
Pry  or  and  his  sister  were  allowed  to  join  the  little 
group,  which  thus  became  a  select  family  school. 
"From  this  time,''  writes  his  sister,  "Dr.  Hoge  be- 
came not  only  the  pastor,  but  the  invaluable  teacher, 
and  veritable  friend  of  several  of  the  happiest  years  of 
Theodorick's  life.  With  him  he  continued  his  Latin 
studies,  and  began  the  study  of  Greek  and  Algebra, 
and  although  he  recited  only  three  days  in  the  week, 
he  progressed  with  astonishing  rapidity.  Under  Dr. 
Hoge's  tuition,  his  taste  and  heart  were  educated,  as 
well  as  his  mind.  Study  was  made  so  pleasant,  by  the 
enthusiasm  of  both  teacher  and  pupil,  that  without  the 


SCHOOL-LIFE.  41 

excitement  of  prizes,  or  even  marks  for  which  to  con- 
tend, it  became  '  its  own  exceeding  great  reward. '  At 
one  time,  Dr.  Hoge  read  to  us,  (  The  Vision  of  Mirza,' 
then  putting  away  the  book,  required  us  to  write  it 
from  memory.  I  well  recollect  that  Theodorick's  ver- 
sion retained,  in  many  places,  the  very  language  of 
Addison,  and  where  his  memory  failed  him,  he  so 
admirably  imitated  the  author's  style,  that  the  differ- 
ence was  scarcely  perceptible. 

"During  this  year,  he  had  serious  impressions  on 
the  subject  of  religion.  I  found  once  a  stray  leaf  from 
his  diary,  since  destroyed  or  lost,  on  which  was  written  : 
i  Sometimes  I  think  God  has  forgiven  my  sins,  and  that 

I  am  a  Christian,  but  then  again  I  fear ,'  and  there 

the  paper  Avas  torn  in  half.  Thus  early  was  sown  the 
seed,  which,  'after  many  days,'  brought  forth  such 
precious  fruit  in  Princeton. 

' '  Not  the  least  potent  teacher  of  his  expanding  mind, 
at  this  time,  was  our  beautiful  country  home,  among 
the  mountains.  He  lived  out  of  doors,  learning  by 
heart  every  foot  of  ground  for  miles  around  us,  and 
investing  it  all  with  some  fancied  association  of  history 
or  romance.  A  little  creek,  which  wound  through 
meadow  and  forest,  about  half  a  mile  from  the  house, 
was  his  favorite  place  for  play.  Sometimes  it  served 
as  the  River  Rhine,  and  its  modest  banks  bore  the  im- 
posing names  of  i  Ehrenbreitstein,'  '  Drachenfals,'  etc. ; 
sometimes  it  was  an  enchanted  stream,  which  we  were 
to  cross  by  stepping-stones,  to  gain  a  paradise  beyond. 
Forsaking  the  public  road,  we  usually  walked  to  school 
along  its  banks,  fancying  ourselves  pilgrims  on  the 


42  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

banks  of  the  Jordan,  Christian  and  Hopeful  in  the 
land  of  Beulah,  or  two  knights  in  quest  of  adventures. 
Several  old  stone-quarries  in  the  forest  were  also  fre- 
quented haunts.  Here  he  would  read  and  study,  lying 
on  his  back  and  looking  up  at  the  sky  through  the 
over-arching  branches  ;  or,  wearied  with  books  and 
thought,  scaling  the  sides  of  almost  perpendicular  rocks, 
with  as  much  energy  as  though  they  were  indeed  the 
walls  of  a  castle,  within  which  lay  the  reward  of  his 
prowess.  In  the  early  spring,  a  meadow,  carpeted 
with  blue  and  white  violets,  was  supposed  to  represent 
the  'fair  land  of  France,'  and  the  hapless  flowers,  re- 
ceiving the  names. of  the  principal  characters  of  the 
Revolution,  were  mercilessly  guillotined  in  the  fork- 
ing branch  of  a  little  willow. 

"Our  'study'  was  far  above  the  ground,  amid  the 
gnarled  boughs  of  an  ancient  cherry  tree.  Here,  on 
every  bright  day,  we  would  sit  for  hours,  from  the  time 
when  the  tree  was  covered  with  its  snowy  blossoms, 
until  the  last  yellow  leaves  fluttered  to  the  earth.  Often 
have  the  books  of  man's  writing  lain  unheeded  before 
my  brother,  while  his  eyes  sought  the  glorious  page  of 
God's  authorship.  Hill  rose  above  hill,  mountain  above 
mountain,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach.  Close  beside 
us  was  the  summit  of  Monticello,  crowned  with  tie 
home  and  tomb  of  Jefferson  ;  the  little  river,  winding 
at  its  base,  veiling  it,  each  morning,  with  a  cloud  of 
silver  mist ;  the  spring-time  clothing  it  with  tender 
green,  the  summer  with  a  darker,  richer  hue,  the 
autumn  covering  it  with  a  jeweled  robe,  or  making  it 
tremulously  beautiful  through  the  soft,  warm  haze  of 


SCHOOL-LIFE.  43 

'Indian  summer,'  and  the  winter  wrapping  it  in  its 
pure  snow  mantle,  no  less  beautiful  against  the  clear, 
blue  sky.  Billowy  fields  of  wheat  and  corn  rolled,  on 
our  right,  to  the  feet  of  other  hills,  and  the  borders  of 
the  luxuriant,  perfumed  Southern  forests.  Here  and 
there,  a  church-spire  rose  in  the  direction  of  Charlottes- 
ville,  about  two  miles  distant,  and  the  rotunda  of  the 
University  of  Virginia  looked  out  above  the  surround- 
ing trees.  The  grand  circle  of  the  everlasting  hills 
swept  around  the  horizon,  their  outlines  cut  in  the 
deep  and  vivid  blue  against  their  paler  background. 
There  may  be  some  scenes  as  fair,  with  lakes,  and  foun- 
tains, and  all  the  attractive  results  of  landscape  garden- 
ing, which  while  they  delight,  fail  to  elevate  the  mind  ; 
but  here,  where  earth  herself  seemed  struggling  heaven- 
ward, it  was  impossible  not  to  look  '  from  nature  up  to 
nature's  God,'  and  I  believe  that  the  '  unspoken  word- 
ing '  of  these  eloquent  companions  of  his  boyhood,  did 
much  to  raise  his  mind  above  the  littleness  of  mere 
worldly  ambition,  to  give  him  aspirations  for  a  calm, 
high  life,  which  should  be  closer  to  heaven  than  to  earth, 
above  the  passions  and  the  strivings  of  mankind  :  an 
ideal  too  sublime  to  be  satisfied  in  this  world  !  " 

The  record  of  Pryor's  life,  during  the  time  he  con- 
tinued to  be  Dr.  Hoge's  pupil,  would  need  nothing 
more  to  make  it  complete,  if  we  were  able  to  introduce 
here  his  teacher's  narrative  of  his  daily  school-life. 
But  teacher  and  taught  have  alike  passed  away.  The 
following,  from  the  widow  of  Dr.  Hoge,  almost  sup- 
plies the  want.  ' '  I  well  remember  the  day  that  my 
husband  came  in  with  Mrs.  Pryor's  kind  and  compli- 


44  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

mentary  note,  asking  him  to  teach  her  children  with 
his  own.  He  at  once  seized  upon  the  plan  in  his  eager 
way,  and  took  Theodorick  and  his  sister  straight  to  his 
arms  and  heart.  Never  was  instruction  a  source  of 
more  unmingled  delight  to  teacher  and  pupils.  I  can 
see  even  now  the  glow  of  love  and  pride  that  would 
light  up  his  noble  face,  as  he  talked  over,  at  home,  the 
achievements  of  those  youthful  minds  in  his  bright 
little  study  ;  that  unpretending  center,  from  which  radi- 
ated such  beams  of  genius. 

' '  I  delight  to  dwell  upon  my  husband  and  Theodo- 
rick, linking  them  in  tender  memories.  Never,  1 
believe,  did  a  purer  enthusiasm  flash  from  the  soul  of 
an  instructor ;  never  was  it  caught  and  given  back  with 
intenser  lustre  by  the  soul  of  a  student.  I  especially 
recall  one  day,  when  my  husband  returned  in  such  an 
ecstasy  of  admiration  for  Theodorick,  that  even  his 
eloquent  tongue  seemed  hardly  able  to  express  it.  He 
had  kept  his  little  quartette  longer  than  usual  over 
problems  in  mathematics.  Drawn  on  by  the  evident 
interest  and  satisfaction  of  all,  and  fascinated  by  the 
workings  of  Theodorick's  mind,  he  had  forgotten  how 
time  was  passing.  At  last,  suddenly  checking  himself, 
he  said  :  '  This  will  do,  now,  my  children  ;  run  out  and 
play.'  No,  no,  Mr.  Hoge  ;  please,  Mr.  Hoge,  go  on, 
this  /.s  better  tlmn  jJ<iit,'  said  Theodorick,  (then,  I  think, 
in  his  eleventh  year)  rubbing  his  hands  together  with 
impulsive  glee,  while  his  dark  eyes  sparkled  and  his 
fresh  cheeks  glowed  ! 

"Often  have  I  heard  Mr.  Hoge  say,  that  he  could 
scarcely  conjecture  the  career  that  was  before  that 


SCHOOL-LIFE.  45 

splendid  boy  !  Who  could  have  conjectured  it  1  Such 
a  brilliant  beginning,  and  such 'a  lamentable  end? 
Such  glory  was  never  followed  by  such  gloom  !  And 
yet,  the  gloom  only  covers  the  brief  pathway  that  led 
to  a  glory  unspeakably  brighter  than  that  of  the  grand- 
est earthly  career.  How  comforting  to  think  of  his 
radiant  spirit  freed  from  all  the  fetters  of  this  limiting 
flesh,  which  is  ever  checking  the  immortal  mind,  say- 
ing, '  thus  far  shalt  thou  go,  and  no  farther. '  Thus  it 
was  with  Theodorick.  The  envious  mortal  frame  strug- 
gled against  the  supremacy  of  the  soul.  Vain  effort, 
which  only  opened  a  swifter  passage  into  infinite 
freedom  ! 

1 '  I  have  often  thought  of  the  exultation  with  which 
Mr.  Hoge  would  have  watched  his  career.  I  little 
thought  that  they  were  so  soon  to  be  reunited,  where 
higher  deeds  '  are  wrought  with  tumults  of  acclaim. ' 
One  who  was  afterwards  Theodorick's  teacher  recently 
remarked,  that  '  no  passing  event  or  news  mentioned 
in  his  presence  ever  arrested  his  attention  ;  his  mind 
was  always  at  work,  solving  some  great  problem  ;  he 
•  never  knew  any  rest. '  Does  not  this  throw  a  light  too 
sadly  clear  upon  the  end  ?  But  in  view  of  this,  it  is 
sweet  to  apply  to  him  the  oft-quoted  words  of  Augus- 
tine :  '  Lord,  Thou  hast  made  man  for  thyself,  and  he 
finds  no  rest,  till  he  finds  it  in  Thee  ! '  " 


CHAPTER  V. 

IN    WAR    TIME. 

"  I  hear  an  army's  mighty  tread, 

And  the  sound  of  war's  alarms  ; 
I  read  a  thought  serene  and  dread, 

Written  in  gleaming  arms  ; 
A  solemn  purpose  fills  the  air 
Like  the  holy  effluence  of  a  prayer." 

— Sh'illdber. 

1  A  R  L  Y  in  the  year  1861,  when  Pryor  was 
scarcely  twelve  years  of  age,  began  the  war 
with  the  Confederacy,  many  of  its  battles  being 
fought  at  the  very  doors  of  his  childhood  home.  From 
the  time  when  the  first  blow  was  struck  at  Fort  Suinp- 
ter,  until  the  evacuation  of  Richmond  and  the  surren- 
der which  followed,  the  sounds  most  familiar  to  his 
ears  were  the  beating  of  drums,  the  marching  of 
troops,  the  clangor  of  arms,  and  the  noise  of  battle. 
During  these  four  years  his  life  was  often  in  jeopardy. 
More  than  once  he  was  driven  from  home  ;  he  was 
often  exposed  to  the  fire  of  contending  armies  ;  on 
one  occasion  he  was  fairly  in  battle,  and  for  months  he 
suffered  the  inconveniences  and  wants  consequent  upon 


48  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

a  long  and  miserable  siege  in  a  city  that  was  but  poorly 
supplied  with,  the  necessities  of  life. 

His  life  at  this  time  presents  a  bold  contrast,  as 
compared  with  the  preceding  period.  Previously  he 
had  lived  a  quiet  life  in  a  region  of  country  whose 
peculiar  charm  was  that  of  repose.  Only  the  gentlest 
ripples  had  roughened  the  calm  surface  of  his  exist- 
ence. But  all  this  came  suddenly  to  an  end  with  the 
call  to  arms.  No  State  was  more  thoroughly  convulsed 
by  the  throes  of  the  great  conflict  than  his  own,  and  no 
class  of  people  suffered  greater  disaster  than  those 
with  whom  he  was  immediately  and  dearly  connected. 
For  the  youthful  scholar,  perhaps,  war  had  few  charms ; 
there  was  little  sympathy  between  it  and  his  peace- 
loving  nature.  Of  gentle  and  retiring  nature,  he 
shrunk  instinctively  from  collision  with  any.  He 
never  quarrelled.  Up  to  this  time  he  had  never  lifted 
a  hand  in  anger,  or  struck  a  blow  in  self-defense.  He 
was  always  ready  to  yield  whatever  was  properly  at  his 
disposal,  for  the  good  of  others,  or  for  the  sake  of 
harmony.  But,  though  never  obstinate,  he  was  ever 
firm.  He  could  not  concede  an  iota  of  principle.  It 
seemed  an  impossibility  for  him  to  swerve  a  hair,  on 
any  inducement,  from  the  path  of  duty  as  he  saw  it. 

The  feelings  of  patriotism  that  stirred  his  youthful 
breast,  however,  proved  superior  to  his  quiet  disposi- 
tion, and  he  entered  with  ardor  into  the  war  move- 
ment, and  kindled  with  enthusiasm  as  he  saw  the 
preparations  for  the  struggle  that  was  imminent.  Had 
he  been  older,  he  would  have  followed  his  impulses, 
and  sprung  forward  at  the  first  call  for  troops  ;  for  he 


IN    WAR    TIME.  49 

was  already  persuaded  that  the  cause  of  his  friends 
was  right,  and  he  was  never  a  laggard  in  duty. 
Mothers  were  girding  their  sons  for  the  contest ;  wives 
sent  the  fathers  of  their  babes  to  all  the  perils  of 
battle  ;  and  maidens  hurried  or  postponed  their  bridals, 
that  their  lovers  might  hasten  to  the  field,  where  shot 
and  shell  tear  limb  from  limb,  and  cover  the  ground 
with  dead.  Our  boy  looked  upon  it  all,  and  sighed 
because  he  was  but  a  boy,  and  debarred  by  his  youth 
from  the  privilege  of  performing  some  part  in  the  great 
struggle. 

Early  in  April  Virginia  seceded,  arid  from  all  its 
hills  and  valleys  marched  the  hosts  of  the  new  Con- 
federacy to  repel  invasion.  The  woes  which  subse- 
quently fell  upon  this  State  can  never  be  told.  It  is 
here  and  there  an  isolated  fact  only,  which  history  has 
collected  and  preserved.  The  wild  wail  of  the  storm 
of  misery  passed  away,  as  the  howlings  of  the  mid- 
night tempest  die,  leaving  its  memorials  in  beggary, 
ashes,  mutilation,  orphanage,  and  blood.  The  seces- 
sion of  the  State  he  represented  'was  followed  by  Gen. 
Pryor's  resignation  of  his  seat  in  Congress.  He  was 
early  appointed  to  a  command  in  the  Confederate 
army,  and^was  stationed  at  Smithfield.  The  following 
winter  Pry  or  spent  in  camp  with  his  father.  Although 
so  young,  he  manifested  a  full  apppreciation  of  the 
novelties  and  incongruities  of  his  new  mode  of  life, 
and  entered  heartily  into  all  the  legitimate  excitements 
and  enjoyments  which  the  camp  afforded.  His  bear- 
ing towards  those  with  whom  he  was  associated  would 
have  done  credit  to  a  general.  It  was  knightly.  All 


50  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

the  graces  of  valor,  loyalty,  and  generosity  sat  upon 
him,  and  made  him  the  very  flower  of  heroic  youth. 

But  the  soldierly  boy  did  not  waste  his  time  or 
neglect  the  cultivation  of  his  mind.  He  never  ceased 
to  be  a  student.  Among  other  things,  he  acquired 
proficiency  in  details  of  drill  and  company  movements, 
while  making  army  tactics  a  subject  of  careful  study. 
He  read  all  his  father's  books,  and  borrowed  others 
from  Major-General  Pemberton.  This  study  engrossed 
him  during  the  greater  part  of  the  winter,  and  when 
General  Pryor  left  his  command  temporarily  to  take 
his  seat  in  the  Southern  Congress  at  Richmond, 
the  soldiers  persuaded  him  to  drill  their  regiments, 
lavishing  upon  him  an  amount  of  adulation  which 
might  have  injured  a  boy  of  less  modesty  and  humility. 
His  father  had  no  opponent  at  the  Congressional 
election  but  his  son,  for  when  the  ballots  were  con- 
sulted, some  were  found  to  have  been  cast  for  Theo- 
dorick  ! 

The  events  of  the  following  spring  made  it  necessary 
for  Pryor's  parents  to  select  a  home  for  their  son  where 
he  would  be  out  of  danger,  and  in  position  to  resume 
his  regular  studies.  He  was  accordingly  sent  into  the 
interior  of  the  State,  to  the  residence  of  his  uncle,  Dr. 
Rice,  in  Charlotte  County.  "  Here,"  says  his  sister, 
"he  lived  for  a  year  on  a  large  plantation,  winning 
not  only  the  admiration  but  the  love  of  all  who  knew 
him.  In  regard  to  his  mental  attributes,  his  teacher, 
Mr.  King,  joined  with  all  his  other  instructors,  in 
prophesying  for  him  a  most  brilliant  future.  He  im- 
mediately, and  without  apparent  effort,  took  his  place 
at  the  head  of  all  his  classes  here  as  elsewhere. 


IN    WAR    TIME.  51 

"  During  this  year  his  character  matured  in  a  very 
remarkable  manner.  He  was  naturally  extremely 
passionate,  but  my  aunt  has,  told  me  that  she  never 
saw  him,  even  when  under  great  provocation,  lose  his 
self-control  for  a  moment.  He  would  sometimes  hur- 
riedly leave  the  room  with  flashing  eyes,  but  always 
returned  in  a  few  moments  perfectly  calm.  The  secret 
of  his  strength  may  be  told  in  the  words  of  a  faithful 
and  pious  colored  woman,  who  was  more  the  friend 
than  the  servant  of  the  family.  i  I  never  knew  Theo- 
dorick  to  neglect  reading  his  Bible  and  praying  both 
morning  and  night.'  I  was  told  that  if  any  interrup- 
tion occurred  to  his  morning  devotions,  he  would  leave 
his  play  and  steal  to  his  room  for  half  an  hour  during 
the  day. 

"  It  was  at  this  time  that  he  and  his  cousin,  William 
Rice,  two  years  his  senior,  became  inseparable  friends. 
This  lad  was,  perhaps,  the  best  companion  that  could 
have  been  chosen  for  him  at  this  time,  since  he  was 
not  only  capable  of  appreciating  and  sympathizing 
with  his  literary  tastes,  but  also  initiated  him  into 
boyish  sports,  often  luring  him  from  his  books  and 
serious  thought  for  the  sake  of  a  long  day's  fishing, 
riding,  or  hunting. 

"A  little  incident,  illustrating  his  force  of  character, 
put  an  end  to  this  pleasant  episode  of  his  life.  In  the 
summer  of  1864,  when  the  whole  South  was  convulsed 
with  the  agony  of  the  closing  scenes  of  the  war,  when, 
even  in  the  secluded  region  surrounding  his  home, 
there  was  not  left  a  man  capable  of  bearing  arms,  a 
rumor  reached  the  neighborhood  that  a  party  of  Union 
troops  was  advancing  upon  an  unprotected  magazine  of 


52          PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

army  stores  a  few  miles  from  Dr.  Rice's  residence. 
Immediately  old  men  and  boys  organized  into  a  regi- 
ment, marched  to  the  place,  threw  up  breastworks, 
and,  after  a  severe  engagement,  repulsed  the  enemy. 
Master  Rice,  full  of  excitement  and  boyish  heroism, 
could  not  be  prevented  from  joining  the  perilous  ex- 
pedition ;  but  although  Theodorick  was  no  less  anxious 
to  share  at  least  a  few  of  the  dangers  of  the  war,  Dr. 
Rice  was  firm  in  refusing  his  consent.  We  could  see 
that  he  was  mortified  when  his  cousin  came  home,  tri- 
umphing in  having  taken  part  in  one  of  the  exciting 
scenes  of  the  war,  and  wearing  very  proudly  the  laur- 
els gained  by  his  victory.  Without  consulting  any 
one,  Theodorick  wrote  to  his  mother  in  Petersburg, 
which  was  then  in  a  state  of  siege,  saying  that,  though 
he  could  not  share  the  exertions,  he  might  at  least 
share  the  dangers,  of  the  war.  So  earnestly  did  he 
plead  to  be  with  her  that  at  length,  against  her  will, 
she  consented,  and  he  went  firmly  to  the  bombarded 
city,  with  the  confessed  presentiment  that  he  should 
lose  his  life,  an  act  of  no  small  courage  in  a  boy  not 
yet  thirteen  years  of  age. 

"  The  scene  of  our  last  Sabbath  together  before  we 
separated  for  more  than  two  years  is  often  before  me 
now.  Theodorick,  my  cousin,  and  I,  sitting  with  the 
large  old  family  Bible  on  our  laps,  read  together  the 
one  hundred  and  nineteenth  psalm.  Very  vividly  I 
see  again  the  bright,  earnest  faces  of  those  two  boys, 
eloquent  with  the  words  upon  their  lips,  those  two  of 
whom  so  many  hoped  so  much,  together  then  for  the 
last  time  on  earth,  together  now  where  the  '  testimo- 
nies' they  loved  are,  indeed,  their  'heritage  forever/  " 


CHAPTER   VI. 

BESIEGED. 

"  Worth  our  want  and  self-denial, 

Worth  all  the  weary  time — 
Worth  the  woe  and  the  peril, 

To  stand  in  that  strait  sublime  ! 
Fear  ?    A  forgotten  form  ! 

Death  ?    A  dream  of  the  eyes  ! 
We  were  atoms  in  God's  great  storm, 
That  roared  through  the  angry  skies." 

— Brownell. 

CUBING  the  last  year  of  the  war,  Pry  or,  in 
common  with  the  other  members  of  his  fam- 
ily, suffered  all  the  horrors  of  a  protracted 
siege.  The  army  of  Northern  Virginia  had  been 
forced  into  the  defenses  around  Richmond  and  Peters- 
burg by  heavy  losses  sustained  in  the  Wilderness,  and, 
abstaining  from  the  adventurous  offensive  operations  in 
which  it  had  engaged  up  to  this  time,  assumed  the  atti- 
tude of  defense.  General  Grant,  having  crossed  the 
James  River,  moved  against  the  Confederate  army  from 
south  and  west.  ' '  Now  for  the  first  time  were  fairly 
pitted  the  military  resources  and  endurance  of  the 
5 


54  PRYOK I    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

North  against  the  military  resources  and  enthusiasm 
of  the  South.  For  every  life  he  destroyed,  Grant 
could  afford  to  lose  two."  The  issue  was  of  the  high- 
est moment,  the  fate  of  the  Southern  capital  and  the 
life  of  its  defenders  depending  upon  it. 

After  crossing  the  James  River,  Grant  attempted 
the  capture  of  Petersburg  by  a  coup  de  main  before 
Lee  could  defend  it  in  force.  But  in  this  he  was  un- 
successful, and  his  operations  assumed  the  form  of  a 
siege,  the  surrender  of  Petersburg  implying  the  fall  of 
Richmond.  An  effort  was  next  made  to  break  in  be- 
tween the  two  cities.  This  also  proved  a  failure. 
Grant  now  began  to  entrench,  and  fortified  his  posi- 
tion, hoping  by  frequent  sallies  to  right  and  left  to 
weaken  his  adversary  and  compel  a  surrender,  retreat 
being  almost  impossible.  At  one  time  he  tried  to 
break  through  the  enemy's  front  by  the  aid  of  a  mine, 
but  the  result  was  a  serious  disaster  to  his  own  army. 
His  last  and  most  successful  plan  was  to  make  a  dem- 
onstration with  one  wing  of  his  army,  and  on  the  Con- 
federates moving  their  forces  to  resist  the  attack,  to 
strike  their  weakened  point  energetically  with  the 
other. 

While  Grant  was  thus  steadily  acting  against  the 
political  and  military  focus  of  the  Confederacy  by  de- 
veloping his  entrenched  line,  and  relentlessly  execut- 
ing his  design  of  destroying  its  armies,  troops  from  all 
parts  were  drawn  into  the  defenses  of  his  opponents. 
The  investment  of  Petersburg  began  on  the  repulse  of 
Grant's  first  assault  of  the  18th  of  June,  1864.  At 
this  time  Pryor  was  in  the  interior  of  the  State  with 


BESIEGED.  55 

the  family  of  his  uncle,  Dr.  Rice,  and  attending  a 
country  school  in  Charlotte,  the  unsettled  condition  of 
the  country  rendering  it  necessary  that  he  should  be 
placed  where  he  might  be  less  subject  to  raids  and  sud- 
den alarms.  The  rest  of  the  family,  General  Pry  or 
excepted,  were  at  Petersburg,  shut  in  by  the  move- 
ments of  the  army,  and  in  a  position  of  very  great  dan- 
ger. Once  Mrs.  Pry  or  attempted  to  join  her  son  in 
Charlotte,  but  after  proceeding  fifty  miles  was  warned 
back  by  the  approach  of  a  raiding  party. 

Petersburg  was  deserted,  except  by  a  few  families 
who  remained  through  the  strength  of  their  affection 
for  those  "  at  the  front."  No  regular  supplies  reached 
the  city,  and  the  necessaries  of  life  were  brought  from 
a  distance  at  great  peril.  Soon  after  the  beginning  of 
the  siege,  the  large  guns  of  the  Northern  army  opened 
upon  the  city.  The  air  was  full  of  flying  iron  and  lead, 
pattering  in  a  shower  upon  the  ground,  rattling  like 
hail  among  the  trees,  and  crashing  through  the  houses 
on  every  side. 

Rumors  of  these  things  having  reached  Pryor  in  his 
sheltered,  happy  home  in  Charlotte,  he  wrote  to  his 
mother,  representing  the  impropriety  of  her  son's  en- 
joying safety  and  comfort  while  she  was  exposed  to 
privation  and  peril,  and  earnestly  entreating  that  he 
might  be  allowed  to  come  to  her.  "  If,"  said  he,  "I 
cannot  be  of  any  use,  I  can  at  least  be  with  you." 

The  letter  was  immediately  followed  by  his  arrival. 
He  had  grown  little  during  his  absence,  was  small  for 
his  age,  and  in  his  linen  blouses  looked  as  fair  as  a 
girl.  But  a  great  and  brave  heart  beat  in  his  youthful 


56  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

breast,  and  the  consciousness  that  he  was  near  his 
mother,  to  suffer,  and  if  need  be  to  die  with  her,  made 
him  happy  ! 

The  firing  continued  all  summer,  not  constantly,  but 
fitfully.  Sometimes  there  would  be  a  pause  of  a  week 
or  two  ;  then  the  sullen  boom  of  a  challenging  gun 
would  break  the  silence  of  the  night,  followed  by  a 
fierce  duel  of  artillery,  until  the  horizon  was  lit  as  by 
the  fitful  flashes  of  the  aurora  borealis.  At  times  the 
scene  was  one  of  absolute  magnificence.  The  firing  of 
guns  would  sometimes  continue  for  hours,  keeping  up 
one  uninterrupted  peal  of  thunder,  while  each  dis- 
charge lighted  up  with  vivid  brilliance  the  locality 
from  which  it  came,  and  the  smoke,  which  rolled  in 
clouds  towards  the  heavens.  Nothing  in  the  way  of 
pyrotechnics  could  equal  in  effect  a  broadside  from 
guns,  whose  tongues  of  flame,  piercing  into  the  dark- 
ness, revealed  with  a  momentary  distinctness  the  can- 
non from  which  they  sprung,  and  the  heavy  boom 
coming  after  an  apparent  delay. 

Still  the  family  felt  comparatively  safe,  the  shells 
falling  in  the  lower  part  of  the  city,  near  Blandford. 
One  day,  however,  when  Pryor  was  playing  in  the  gar- 
den with  his  brothers,  an  immense  shell,  hissing  like  a 
serpent,  buried  itself  near  them,  the  concussion  throw- 
ing one  of  the  boys  to  the  ground.  A  few  days  later  a 
similar  shell  lodged  in  the  walls  of  the  Presbyterian 
church,  half  a  block  off,  dismissing  the  congregation 
without  the  formality  of  a  benediction.  Soon  another 
shell  exploded  immediately  over  the  house,  showering 
down  its  dangerous  fragments.  Then  the  family  knew 


BESIEGED.  57 

they  were  no  longer  safe — that  some  of  the  enemy's 
guns  had  them  in  range.  Their  reliance  for  safety  was 
in  hasty  flight  to  the  bomb-proof  cellar  of  the  Ander- 
son Seminary.  Once  this  flight  occurred  in  the  night. 
The  children  were  called  up  after  midnight,  and  on 
their  way  a  large  shell  exploded  immediately  in  their 
path  ! 

Notwithstanding  the  dangers  by  which  he  was  con- 
stantly surrounded,  Pry  or  never  exhibited  the  least 
symptom  of  fear.  Thoroughly  excited  internally,  and 
every  nerve  tense,  he  could  not  be  accused  of  any 
tendency  to  avoid  danger.  He  was  as  cool  and  as 
natural  as  ever  in  life.  Being  greatly  interested  in  all 
the  movements  of  the  army,  he  frequently  visited  the 
trenches,  and  that  at  times  when  no  one  else  ventured 
abroad.  The  absorbing  interests  of  the  hour,  and  the 
frequent  presence  of  the  wounded  and  dying  men,  for- 
bade all  thought  of  self. 

At  this  time  Pryor's  dear  friend  and  former  teacher, 
then  pastor  at  Petersburg,  fell  ill,  and  was  removed 
under  shell-fire  to  the  country.  His  death  occurred  a 
few  weeks  afterwards,  and  Mrs.  Pryor  ventured,  in  an 
ambulance,  to  visit  his  widow  and  orphans.  Twice  on 
her  way  did  she  stop  to  listen — twice  turn  back  in 
fear — but  was  finally  assured  by  the  soldier  who  was 
driving  that  the  firing  they  heard  was  not  at  Peters- 
burg. When  she  returned  in  the  evening  she  found 
that  her  house  had  been  struck  by  a  shell  and  deserted 
by  its  inmates.  Pryor  was  the  first  to  return  and 
relate  the  events  of  the  day.  With  perfect  calmness 
he  told  of  his  perilous  walk  into  the  country,  describ- 


58          PBYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

ing  the  crashing  of  the  shells  through  the  boughs  of 
the  trees  !  Whatever  he  may  have  felt,  he  preserved 
an  external  appearance  of  the  most  absolute  self- 
possession. 

Worn  out  by  this  perpetual  anxiety,  and  perceiving 
that  both  armies  would  winter  around  Petersburg,  the 
family  removed  to  "  Cottage  Farm,"  three  miles  dis- 
tant from  the  city,  and  just  "  out  of  shell  range." 
There  they  could  witness  the  superb  display  without 
danger — without  even  hearing  the  ominous  whirr 
which  made  each  missile  seem  so  near.  There,  too, 
they  were  relieved  from  that  harrowing  sound  of 
picket-firing,  which  night  after  night  had  banished 
sleep,  and  filled  them  with  mournful  apprehension. 
But  having  escaped  the  thunderbolts,  the  gaunt 
spectre,  Famine,  looked  them  steadily  in  the  face. 
General  Pry  or  a  prisoner  of  war  in  Fort  Lafayette, 
pay  and  rations  both  ceased  ;  and  the  little  family,  cut 
off  from  all  resources,  endured  much  stern  hardship. 
A  limited  quantity  of  rice  was  allowed  the  besieged  by 
the  government,  and  a  small  quantity  of  meal  could  be 
purchased.  Flour  was  held  at  $1300  a  barrel,  hams  $75 
apiece,  sugar  $30  a  pound,  and  happy  were  those  who 
could  command  such  luxuries  even  at  these  prices. 
Tea  and  coffee  were  almost  unknown.  Bread,  rice, 
and  molasses  made  from  the  native  sugar-cane,  were 
the  chief  articles  of  food.  These  were  occasionally 
varied  by  a  princely  present  from  some  distant  farmer 
of  peas,  hominy,  and  a  few  pounds  of  butter  or  bacon. 

General  Lee's  headquarters  were  immediately  before 
"  Cottage  Farm,"  and  its  inmates  were  sometimes 


BESIEGED.  59 

cheered  by  a  visit  from  the  serene  and  genial  Com- 
mander-in-Chief.  His  presence  always  inspired 
courage  and  confidence  ;  and  the  example  of  the 
soldiers,  whose  white  tents  covered  the  fields,  and 
whose  privations  this  winter  were  extreme,  forbade 
discontent  and  murmuring  from  all  non-combatants. 
It  is  not  remembered  that  a  single  complaint  ever 
escaped  Pryor's  lips.  He  became  very  earnest  and 
grave  this  winter,  and  was  quite  anxious  about  his 
education.  With  a  great  deal  of  trouble  Courtenay's 
Calculus  was  obtained  through  the  blockade,  and 
Major-General  Wilcox  became  his  occasional  teacher. 
The  little  fellow  responded  ardently  to  all  the  repre- 
sentations that  were  made  to  him  of  the  importance  of 
self -culture,  and  studied  amid  all  the  excitement  of 
the  time,  with  such  profit  that  his  instructor  expressed 
enthusiastic  interest  in  him.  His  whole  nature  be- 
came absorbed  and  elevated.  The  experience  he  had 
gone  through  made  the  boy  a  full  man,  in  everything 
but  years.  The  solitary  evening  light  consisted  of 
what  our  Southern  readers  will  recognize  as  a  ' '  Con- 
federate Candle,"  i.  e.9  along  wick  dipped  in  yellow 
wax  and  wound  round  a  bottle  !  There,  while  his 
mother  fashioned  from  cloth  the  unsubstantial  shoes 
for  the  "  moon-faced  darling  of  all,"  or  combined,  as 
in  one  instance,  twenty-six  fragments  of  flannel  to 
make  one  boy's  garment,  Pryor  solved  those  problems 
he  loved  so  well. 

The  soldiers  would  sometimes  come  to  the  door  or 
window  to  look  in,  and  so  touching  was  the  group, 
struggling  thus  under  such  disadvantages,  that  often  a 


60  PBYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

little  brown  parcel  would  be  laid  down,  to  be  discovered 
next  day,  and  found  to  contain  some  man's  whale 
ration  of  coffee,  or  some  officer's  monthly  allow- 
ance of  six  candles  !  Sometimes,  when  the  con- 
versation of  a  visitor  interrupted  Pry  or 's  studies,  he 
would  take  his  book  and  retire  to  an  office  in  the  yard, 
light  a  pine  torch  and  be  perfectly  content.  The  Hon. 
Thomas  Conolly,  M.  P.,  from  England,  visited  the 
family  late  in  the  winter,  and  was  filled  with  astonish- 
ment at  all  these  things.  He  said  the  burning  shells 
on  the  horizon,  and  "  that  boy  at  his  Latin,"  were 
the  most  wonderful  of  all  things  to  him,  and  he  would 
often  leave  the  social  circle  and  go  out  to  the  office  to 
compare  "  that  boy's  Latin  "  with  his  own.  Great  was 
his  amusement  to  hear  the  expression  ' '  cornered. " 
"  That  is  a  perfect  Americanism,"  said  he.  "  What 
can  a  man  do  when  he  is  cornered  ?  blank  wall  at  his 
back  and  his  enemy  in  front  !  " 

Want  and  suffering  continued  throughout  the  win- 
ter, everything  needed  by  man  or  woman  being  ex- 
tremely scarce.  Patriotic  housewives  in  the  interior 
kept  their  busy  looms  and  spinning  wheels  actively  at 
work  ;  but  the  besieged  were  cut  off  from  these  re- 
sources, and  could  only  hope  that,  like  the  ancient 
Israelites,  "  their  raiment  would  not  wax  old  upon 
them."  Stationery  was  so  scarce  that  the  blank  leaves 
of  books  were  brought  into  requisition.  Ink  was 
manufactured  from  the  red  ball  of  the  oak  tree.  Yeast 
was  made  from  a  little  bitter  field  herb  something  like 
the  immortelles,  and  known  as  "  life  everlasting,"  the 
hops  being  all  sent  to  the  hospitals,  to  be  used  as  ano- 


BESIEGED. 


61 


dyne  applications  for  the  sick.  Such  was  the  actual 
condition  of  things  within  the  city,  as  the  long  and 
dreary  winter  came  to  a  close. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  BAPTISM   OF  FIRE. 

"  Cannon  to  right  of  them, 
Cannon  to  left  of  them, 
Cannon  behind  them, 

Volley'd  and  thunder'd." 

— Tennyson. 

HE  opening  of  the  spring  brought  no  relief  to 
the  beleaguered  city.  The  besieged  were  still 
surrounded  on  all  sides,  and  under  Grant's  re- 
morseless strategy  the  armies  of  the  Confederacy  were 
fast  disappearing.  Still  the  inhabitants  of  the  two  cities 
suffered  in  patience,  trusting  to  the  valor  of  their 
troops  and  the  strength  of  their  fortifications.  The  bat- 
tle of  Malvern  Hill  was  fought,  and  their  soldiers  came 
forth  covered  with  the  glory  of  a  decisive  victory,  and 
the  prospect  of  early  succor  inspired  them  with  fresh 
confidence.  Extraordinary  measures  were  taken  to  ex- 
tricate the  army  from  the  position  which  threatened  its 
destruction  by  starvation.  General  Lee  was  promoted 
to  the  command  of  the  entire  army,  and  a  resolution  was 
adopted  to  arm  the  slaves.  The  commander-in-chief 


64  PKYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

determined  to  evacuate  Petersburg  and  Richmond,  and, 
if  possible,  to  join  Johnston's  army  in  North  Carolina. 

On  the  morning  of  April  1st  the  battle  of  Five  Forks 
was  fought,  resulting  in  a  victory  for  the  Union  army. 
Lee,  supposing  that  Grant's  intention  was  to  cut  the 
railroads,  almost  stripped  Petersburg  of  its  defenders 
to  meet  the  threatened  attempt.  When  it  was  too  late, 
he  discovered  that  his  right  flank  was  turned,  and  that 
his  adversary  was  in  his  rear.  He  saw,  also,  that  his 
lines  would  be  assaulted  at  once,  and  all  that  he  could 
do  was  to  hold  the  enemy  in  check  until  a  retreat  could 
be  secured. 

The  same  day  Grant's  army  advanced  toward  Pe- 
tersburg. The  defenses  of  the  city  might  have  proved 
impregnable,  had  they  been  properly  garrisoned  ;  but 
Lee  had  withdrawn  most  of  the  troops,  as  we  have 
seen,  to  be  used  at  another  point.  Breastworks  guard- 
ed the  approach  toward  the  south  and  west.  Behind 
these  were  rifle-pits,  flanked  by  a  series  of  batteries,  so 
situated  as  to  command  every  possible  approach.  Be- 
hind the  batteries  was  arranged  an  abatis  of  felled 
trees,  wrhich  might  have  been  made  an  ample  defense 
against  any  assault.  The  intrenchments  thus  thrown 
up  were  several  miles  in  extent.  Upon  every  com- 
manding position  a  battery  frowned  with  its  independ- 
ent line  of  defenses. 

The  same  evening  the  Union  army  approached  the 
defenses  of  the  city,  and  joining  the  forces  already  there, 
established  itself  in  position.  The  two  armies  peace- 
fully slept  within  rifle  range  of  each  other.  No  camp- 
fires  were  kindled,  and  the  spectator  would  not  have 


THE    BAPTISM    OF    FIRE.  65 

supposed  that  in  those  silent  woods,  on  that  quiet 
night,  there  slept  thousands  of  men  waiting  for  the 
bloody  struggle  of  the  morrow.  So  nature  sleeps  on 
the  eve  of  her  terrible  battles.  Thus  silently  the  ele- 
ments prepare  for  the  tempest,  the  tornado,  and  the 
earthquake. 

The  early  part  of  the  following  morning  was  spent  in 
a  series  of  sharp  skirmishes  with  the  Confederate  pick- 
ets. Their  adversaries,  as  yet,  knew  little  of  the  nature 
of  the  works  which  they  were  to  carry.  Now  and  then 
a  shell  was  thrown  from  a  Union  gun  into  some  suspic- 
ious spot,  awakening  a  response,  and  revealing  a  bat- 
tery. It  was  thought  that  the  flower  of  the  Confederate 
army  was  in  waiting  behind  the  defenses,  and  the  attack 
was  therefore  conducted  slowly  and  with  caution. 
Breasting  the  fire  of  the  defending  force,  the  Union 
troops  swept  like  a  flood  over  the  intrenchments,  and 
the  true  condition  of  things  was  at  once  apparent.  In 
perfect  line  of  battle,  with  skirmishers  in  front,  the 
majestic  sweep  of  the  living  flood,  in  the  bright  sun- 
light, was  both  beautiful  arid  sublime.  The  Confeder- 
ate troops  contested  the  ground  obstinately,  gallantly. 
A  shower  of  grape  and  canister  shot  ploughed  their 
ranks,  but  closing  up,  they  returned  a  murderous  vol- 
ley of  balls  and  bullets.  For  hours  the  unyielding  com- 
batants struggled  in  the  death  conflict.  Every  foot  of 
ground  was  covered  with  the  dead  and  dying  ;  the 
groans  of  the  wounded,  all  along  the  line,  mingled 
with  the  incessant  roar  of  the  cannon  and  the  ring  of 
the  musket.  The  trees  of  the  forest,  pruned  and  shat- 
tered by  the  balls,  showed  how  severe  was  the  strife. 


66  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

At  length  an  advantage  was  gained  by  the  Union 
troops,  and  the  brave  defenders  commenced  a  sullen 
retreat,  yet  sternly  resisting.  They  were  pressed  so 
fiercely,  however,  that  soon  their  retreat  became  a  pre- 
cipitate flight.  The  works  were  deserted,  and  the  roads 
were  soon  thronged  with  retiring  columns  of  cavalry, 
infantry,  and  artillery  ;  while  ambulances  and  baggage- 
wagons  disputed  progress  with  the  mass  of  moving 
men.  Before  mid-day  the  entire  exterior  defenses  had 
been  carried,  and  many  prisoners  captured.  The  Con- 
federate army  was  divided  into  two  ;  and  the  Union 
troops  having  carried  everything  in  their  front,  swung 
to  the  right,  and  moved  toward  Petersburg,  leaving 
that  part  of  their  opponents  which  had  been  cut  off 
from  the  main  army  to  be  disposed  of  by  the  troops 
under  the  command  of  Sheridan. 

Draper  gives  the  following  account  of  the  contest  in 
the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  city  :  '  l  On  reaching  the 
lines  immediately  surrounding  Petersburg,  Gibbon's 
division  came  upon  two  strong  inclosed  works,  the  most 
salient  and  commanding  south  of  the  city — Fort  Alex- 
ander and  Fort  Gregg.  These  were  all  that  stood  in 
the  way  of  a  direct  advance  to  the  city.  The  former 
was  instantly  carried  ;  but  the  resistance  at  Fort  Gregg 
was  so  severe  that  Gibbon's  force  was  driven  back. 
Again  and  again  they  returned  to  the  assault,  and 
thrice  recoiled.  At  length  they  gained  the  crest,  and 
a  hand-to-hand  struggle  ensued.  They  held  their 
ground,  carried  the  fort,  but  found  only  thirty  of  all 
its  garrison  alive ! 

"  Before  night  Lee's  lines  were  broken,  and  his  army 


THE    BAPTISM    OF    FIRE.  67 

irretrievably  ruined.  An  order  was  given  for  the 
evacuation  of  Richmond,  which  was  at  once  carried 
into  effect.  Petersburg  was  evacuated  simultaneously 
with  Richmond.  Its  municipal  authorities  came  out 
and  surrendered  it.  It  was  taken  possession  of  quietly, 
and  the  United  States  flag  hoisted  on  the  Court-house, 
at  an  early  hour  on  Monday  morning." 

The  scene  of  the  hardest  conflict  preceding  the  sur- 
render of  the  city  was  "  Cottage  Farm,"  the  home  of 
General  Pryor's  family.  So  sudden  was  the  attack, 
that  they  were  all  made  unwilling  spectators  of  the 
fight.  At  ten  o'clock  the  family  fled  from  their  home, 
Pryor  and  his  mother  crossing  fields  that  were  literally 
plowed  by  shot  and  shell.  They  reached  the  city  in 
safety,  however,  and  at  one  o'clock  the  farm  was  occu- 
pied by  the  Confederate  battle  line. 

The  day  after  the  surrender  Pryor  returned  to  the 
farm,  when  the  whole  country  was  filled  with  Federal 
soldiers,  found  his  father's  papers  and  private  letters, 
and,  despairing  of  saving  all,  contrived,  unperceived, 
to  burn  them.  The  temporary  home  of  the  family  in 
Petersburg  was  immediately  occupied  as  an  Adjutant's 
office  by  Major-General  Sheridan  ;  and  great  was  the 
anxiety  felt  by  the  older  people  lest  the  boys  should  be 
betrayed,  by  imprudent  speech,  into  trouble.  Pryor's 
behavior  at  this  critical  moment  was  more  than  com- 
mendable. His  bearing  was  courteous  but  dignified  ; 
he  could  not  be  less  than  a  perfect  gentleman,  even  to 
the  enemy. 

Six  weeks  later  the  family  returned  to  "  Cottage 
Farm,"  to  find  their  home  stripped  of  everything,  and 


68  PRYOR  I    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

occupied  by  a  party  of  negroes.  With  some  difficulty 
the  house  was  cleared,  and  the  family  began  life  over 
again.  So  was  brought  to  an  end  that  period  of 
trouble  and  anxiety  which  Pryor  and  the  other  mem- 
bers of  his  family  suffered  in  common  with  the  faithful 
few  who  were  shut  in  by  the  contending  armies.  At 
no  time  during  the  war  had  they  been  absolutely  free 
from  danger  ;  but  the  months  spent  within  the  envir- 
oned city  was  a  period  of  imminent  peril.  A  kind 
Providence  shielded  them  throughout,  however,  and 
kept  death  and  fatal  disaster  from  their  number.  The 
return  of  peace  saw  them  restored  to  their  desolate 
home  ;  and  a  little  later  Pryor  recovered  his  books, 
and  was  soon  again  engrossed  in  study. 

It  is  not  our  design  to  make  ajar  expose  of  the  losses 
which  General  Pryor  and  his  family  sustained  in  the 
issue  of  the  war.  It  is  sufficient  to  say  that  they  were 
great.  All  that  made  home  pleasant  was  gone — car- 
ried off  by  the  conquering  armies,  never  to  be  recov- 
ered. Rare  pictures,  mementos,  letters  and  other 
papers,  besides  many  interesting  and  valuable  articles 
accumulated  through  many  years,  and  which,  for  va- 
rious reasons,  were  highly  prized,  became  the  booty 
of  the  enemy.  The  valuable  library  alone  esoaped  in 
the  thorough  pillage. 

This  state  of  affairs,  together  with  the  wretched  con- 
dition of  the  State  subsequent  to.  the  declaration  of 
peace,  induced  General  Pryor  to  remove  to  the  North. 
Leaving  his  family  in  Virginia,  he  went  to  New  York 
and  began  the  practice  of  law.  Pryor  soon  followed 
his  father,  and  was  his  constant  companion  during 


THE    BAPTISM    OF    FIRE. 


69 


many  weeks  of  earnest,  manly  labor.  During  his  sjay 
in  the  city  he  was  a  pupil  at  the  College  of  St.  Francis 
Xavier.  Expressing  himself  dissatisfied  with  the  pro- 
gress he  was  making  here,  his  father  at  once  sent  him 
to  Petersburg,  where  he  entered  the  school  of  John 
Christian. 


6 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


A   REMARKABLE   BOY. 


' '  Of  manners  niild, 

And  winning  every  heart,  he  knew  to  please- 
Nobly  to  please." 


remained  in  Mr.  Christian's  school  but 
a  short  time.  In  fact,  some  difficulty  was  ex- 
perienced in  finding  a  school  of  the  proper  kind 
for  him.  He  was  really  prepared  for  college — might 
have  entered  much  earlier  than  this,  had  not  his  age 
and  the  unsettled  condition  of  his  family  rendered 
this  impossible.  He  was  compelled  to  wait,  but  he 
felt  that  the  time  was  too  precious  to  be  spent  in  mere 
waiting.  To  attend  a  school  in  which  he  was  com- 
pelled to  traverse  again  and  again  the  old  ground,  or 
to  accommodate  himself  to  less  advanced  classmates, 
was  no  better.  A  school  was  therefore  sought  in  which 
he  might  begin  the  studies  usually  pursued  in  the  ear- 
lier college  course.  Such  opportunities  were  afforded 
by  a  classical  school,  then  and  still  under  the  charge 
of  Professor  Gordon  W.  McCabe,  and  Pry  or  was  com- 


72  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

mitted  to  him.  The  following  letter  from  his  polished 
pen  we  give  without  alteration  or  abridgment  : 

"I  saw  Theodorick  Pry  or  for  the  first  time  in  the 
autumn  of  1866,  when  he  became  one  of  my  pupils. 
His  mother,  whom  I  knew  to  be  not  only  a  wise  guider 
of  children,  but  a  woman  of  notable  culture,  came  to 
enter  him — his  father  being  absent.  I  remember  her 
saying  to  me,  '  I  have  brought  you  no  ordinary  boy;  he 
is  a  scholar  and  a  gentleman.'  He  could  not  fail  of 
being  a  gentleman  by  reason  of  blood  and  rearing  ;  but 
there  must  be  few  schoolmasters,  indeed,  who  do  not 
set  down  something  to  maternal  fondness  ;  and  I  yet 
recall  a  happy  speech  of  hers  as  the  quick  mother-eye 
detected  the  half  humorous  expression  which  must 
have  crossed  my  face  on  hearing  that  he  was  '  no  ordi- 
nary boy. ' 

"  I  at  once  gave  him  a  preliminary  examination  in 
order  to  assign  him  his  class,  and,  at  its  conclusion, 
felt  half  inclined  to  run  after  his  mother  and  beg  her 
pardon  for  that  momentary  look  of  scepticism,  born  of 
no  small  experience  touching  the  real  and  fancied  abil- 
ities of  '  new  boys. ' 

1 1  He  was  then  fourteen  years  old  ;  a  handsome  lad, 
with  a  certain  frankness  of  face  and  graciousness  of 
manner,  blended  with  diffidence,  which  could  not  fail 
to  claim  at  once  kindly  feeling.  From  that  first  day, 
his  conduct  and  scholarship  were  such  as  won  for  him 
the  hearty  affection  and  admiration  of  every  master 
and  pupil  in  the  school. 

"  Even  then  he  was  strong  in  mathematics  ;  but  de- 
ficient, from  lack  of  practice,  in  writing  Latin  and 


A    REMARKABLE    BOY.  73 

Greek  prose.  In  a  single  year,  he  made  in  these  last 
a  progress  the  most  extraordinary  I  have  ever  known. 
He  commenced  writing  the  exercises  in  Arnold's  Latin 
Prose  ;  but  such  was  his  prodigious  capacity  for  work, 
so  accurately  and  carefully,  yet  so  rapidly,  did  he  do 
that  work,  that  in  the  following  June,  in  his  l  Final 
Examinations,'  he  performed  the  unparalleled  feat  of 
writing,  without  dictionary  or  grammar,  as  required 
in  these  examinations,  the  exercise  set  to  the  senior 
class  in  the  i  School  of  Latin  '  of  the  University  of 
Virginia  !  Of  course  the  work  set  him  in  Roman  his- 
tory and  in  the  Latin  syntax  was  not  nearly  so  diffi- 
cult as  that  required  at  the  University;  but  his  ability 
to  write  the  exercise,  with  no  mistake  in  construction, 
was  little  short  of  wonderful,  the  more  so  when  we 
consider  the  high  requirements  of  the  University,  even 
then,  in  the  matter  of  Latin  prose,  and  that  this  par- 
ticular exercise  was  full  as  difficult  as  the  piece  of 
prose  set  in  the  Cambridge  Examination  Papers  for  the 
same  year  !  I  should  never  have  dreamed  of  setting 
such  a  bit  of  work  to  any  boy,  who  had  such  brief 
training,  save  Pry  or. 

"  Equally  marked  was  his  progress  in  Greek.  During 
the  year  his  class-standing  was  always  first  ;  but  he 
came  out  especially  strong  in  the  examinations.  These 
examinations  are  conducted  in  writing  on  the  plan  pur- 
sued at  the  University  of  Virginia,  the  value  of  the 
questions  set  being  100,  while  the  value  of  the  answers 
rendered  must  be  four-fifths,  or  80,  to  entitle  the  pupil 
to  a  Certificate  of  Distinction.  There  are  two  examin- 
ations during  the  year  :  one  in  the  month  of  February, 


74          PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

(intermediate)  and  the  other  in  June  (final).  Prifor 
obtained  certificates  on  all  his  studies  at  both  examina- 
tions !  The  mathematical  master,  himself  a  brilliant 
mathematician,  had  told  me  that  '  Pry  or  was  a  mathe- 
matical genius,'  and  that  both  in  f  book- work'  and  in 
the  original  problems  set,  he  had  more  than  once 
greatly  simplified  the  methods  of  the  text-books.  In 
the  final  examinations,  he  had  for  book- work  the  whole 
of  Courtenpy's  Differential  and  Integral  Calculus,  and 
sent  in  papers  within  a  shade  of  being  perfect.  The 
fraction  lost  in  marks  was  owing  to  an  oversight  which 
Pry  or  at  once  explained,  when  the  papers  were  handed 
back  to  him  ;  but  as  it  was  the  rigid  rule  of  the  school 
to  consider  only  what  the  written  papers  called  for, 
and  make  no  allowance  for  any  slip  or  inaccuracy,  he 
heartily  acquiesced  in  the  decision. 

' '  In  the  same  examination  he  sent  in  perfect  papers 
on  (  English  Literature,'  the  period  embraced  for  book- 
work  being  from  Chaucer  to  the  comic  dramatists  of 
the  Restoration.  So  struck  was  I  at  the  breadth  of 
the  outside  reading  evinced  in  these  papers,  truly  mar- 
velous for  a  boy  not  yet  fifteen,  that  I  showed  his 
work  to  several  gentlemen  of  culture.  They  paid  him 
the  compliment  of  believing  at  firsf  that  he  must  have 
been  '  crammed  '  for  this  particular  examination,  and 
of  afterwards  confessing  that  no  such  thorough  work 
could  ever  have  come  from  mere  cram. 

"In  his  history  examination,  the  work  given  his 
class  to  prepare  was  the  whole  of  Dr.  Smith's  History 
of  G-reece.  Twenty  questions  were  set  from  the  book, 
and  Pryor's  papers,  sixteen  closely  written  pages  of 


A   REMARKABLE    BOY.  75 

foolscap,  were  handed  back  without  a  scratch  on  them. 
It  was  ever  a  matter  of  astonishment  to  me  how  he 
found  time  to  do  so  much  outside  reading.  I  remem- 
ber once  advising  this  same  history  class  to  read  cer- 
tain chapters  in  G-rote,  touching  the  first  years  of  the 
Peloponnesian  War,  when  Pry  or  told  me,  modestly 
enough,  that  he  had  read  them,  and  at  once  showed 
me  that  he  had  digested  what  he  had  read.  At  another 
time,  I  advised  him  to  read  the  article  on  Plato  in  the 
Encyclopaedia  Britannica,  and  again  he  surprised  me 
by  telling  me  that  he  had  already  done  so. 

1 '  I  do  not  know  what  were  his  powers  of  memory 
afterwards,  but  they  were  then  simply  prodigious  !  He 
appeared  never  to  forget  anything.  At  home  he  had 
excellent  taste  to  guide  him  in  the  matter  of  books  ; 
and  it  seemed  that,  like  Lord  Bacon,  he  had  taken  all 
human  knowledge  to  be  his  province.  In  reading  the 
classics  he  would  often  delight  me  by  pointing  out 
some  parallel  passage  in  the  good  old  English  authors  ; 
and  I  still  remember  a  noble  translation  in  sinewy 
English,  which  he  wrote  in  examination,  of  that  most 
touching  story  of  Cleobis  and  Biton,  out  of  the  Clio  of 
Herodotus.  In  Latin  and  Greek,  however,  his  prefer- 
ences then  were  for  Livy  and  Thueydides,  though,  I 
believe,  as  he  grew  older,  he  gave  up  the  former  for 
Tacitus. 

"  And  yet,  though  so  manifestly  born  a  student,  he 
took  kindly  enough  to  play.  I  never  knew  a  braver 
fellow  in  any  game  that  required  pluck.  Many  a 
scrimmage  have  we  had  together  in  the  great  snow- 
ball battles  where  the  sport  was  rough  enough  ;  and 


67  PRYOK:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

I  remember  that  we  both  belonged  to  the  same  '  nine ' 
in  the  '  School  -  House  Club/  where  he  was  never 
known  to  '  shirk/  and  where  we  had  a  common  bond 
of  sympathy  in  being  reckoned  the  worst  players  in 
the  school. 

"At  the  close  of  the  year,  he  carried  off  the  i  Pegram 
Prize '  in  the  '  Upper  School. '  This  prize  had  been 
founded  in  memory  of  an  old  university  man,  a  dear 
comrade  of  mine,  who  fell  in  action  at  the  early  age 
of  twenty-three,  full  colonel  of  artillery,  mourned  by 
an  army  !  The  fly-leaf  of  the  first  volume  of  the  set 
of  books  presented,  bore  the  following  inscription  : 

"'THE   PEGRAM    PRIZE, 

FOUNDED  IN  1865,  IN  MEMORY  OF 

COLONEL  WM.  JOHNSON  PEGRAM, 

CONFEDERATE    STATES    ARTILLERY, 

Who  fell  with  his  wounds  all  in  front, 

April,   1865  : 

AWARDED  JUNE  28TH,  1867,  TO 
THEODORICK   BLAND   PRYOR, 

FOR    BEST    SCHOLARSHIP   IN   THE    SENIOR   CLASSES.' 

"  His  competitor  for  the  prize,  a  boy  possessed  of 
fine  parts,  who  has  since  achieved  substantial  honors 
in  his  university,  generously  said  :  (  Pryor  deserved  it, 
and  I  had  no  feeling  to  grudge  such  a  splendid  fellow 
what  he  had  fairly  won.' 

1 '  I  need  not  say  what  delight  was  felt  in  the  school 
at  his  later  successes  at  Princeton  and  Cambridge.  I 


A    REMARKABLE    BOY.  77 

believe  that,  given  him  a  few  years,  he  would  have 
made  his  mark  in  any  American  or  European  univer- 
sity, had  he  never  seen  the  inside  of  a  school-room — 
that  he  would  have  made  his  mark  in  the  world,  had 
he  never  seen  the  inside  of  a  university  ! 

"  Of  his  character,  so  finely  tempered  by  manly 
and  gentle  virtues  ;  of  his  modesty  and  inimitable 
sweetness  of  disposition,  there  is  no  need  for  me  to 
speak.  I  always  think  of  him  along  with  another 
brilliant  boy,  Pegram  Prizeman  of  the  year  before, 
who  has  also  '  passed  into  the  still  land,'  as  foremost 
among  those  brave  young  hearts  in  the  ( Upper  School,' 
whom  I  must  ever  love  and  honor — who  did  for  the 
school  what  no  master  can  ever  do  of  himself — who 
did  what  '  the  Sixth '  did  for  Arnold  at  Rugby — set- 
ting such  an  example  of  courage  and  honesty,  main- 
taining such  a  tone  of  absolute  truth  and  delicate  hon- 
or, as  made  every  boy,  down  to  the  lowest  classes  in 
the  school,  ashamed  to  tell  a  lie  ! 

' f  To  those  who  knew  him  only  as  the  brilliant  schol- 
ar, the  simplest  outline  of  that  character  must  seem 
an  ideal  picture,  touched  by  the  tender  hand  of  a  too 
loving  regret  ;  while  to  us  who  possessed  the  privilege 
of  his  friendship,  any  portrait  must  seem  at  best  but 
a  blurred  picture  of  the  lad  we  loved  and  honored." 

The  reader  has  doubtless  already  observed  that  Pryor 
was  not  only  a  hard  student,  conscientiously  perform- 
ing all  the  tasks  assigned  to  him  by  his  teachers,  but 
also  a  most  thorough  reader.  Not  satisfied  with  ac- 
complishing merely  what  was  expected  of  him  in  the 
narrow  line  of  duty,  he  was  even  now  found  foraging 


78  PRYOR :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

in  various  directions,  reaping  in  fields  that  lay  beyond 
the  limits  open  to  other  lads  of  his  age,  and  drawing 
his  inspiration  and  intellectual  strength  from  sources 
that  cause  us  to  wonder  when  we  consider  them.  At 
this  period,  his  reading  would  have  done  credit  to  a 
man  of  thirty,  although  he  had  not  yet  celebrated  his 
sixteenth  birthday ! 

We  cannot  refrain  from  introducing  here  two  letters 
written  to  him  by  his  father  during  the  spring  preced- 
ing his  graduation  from  Prof.  McCabe's  school.  They 
afford  additional  proof  of  his  habit  of  making  inde- 
pendent efforts  at  self -improvement,  and  are  certainly 
remarkable  as  being  addresed  to  and  fully  appreciated 
by  a  youth  of  Pryor's  age.  The  first  of  these  was 
written  in  April,  1867.  It  was  the  season  when  we 
would  more  naturally  expect  to  see  a  Virginia  boy  busy 
with  his  fishing-rod  and  line  ;  but  if  we  had  been  there 
at  the  moment,  we  would  have  looked  upon  a  more  in- 
teresting picture — a  manly  little  fellow,  in  the  retire- 
ment of  his  own  chamber,  eagerly  conning  this  emi- 
nently sensible  letter  : 

"  MY  DEAR  BOY  :  I  am  pleased  to  hear  that  you  are 
reading  '  Boswell's  Johnson.'  It  was  the  book  that 
first  gave  me  a  taste  for  literature,  and  the  habit  of 
reading — a  taste  which  I  have  found  not  only  the  chief 
agency  in  the  development  of  my  intellect,  but  the 
most  unfailing  source  of  happiness.  While  a  prisoner 
of  war,  my  love  of  letters  sustained  and  cheered  me  ; 
and  I  find  it  now  the  best  solace  in  weary  and  unhappy 
moments.  Cultivate  the  taste  and  habit  of  reading, 
now  that  your  mental  constitution  is  forming,  and  it 


A    REMARKABLE    BOY.  79 

will  stand  you  in  good  stead  in  the  future  trials  of  life. 
You  know  what  Horace  says  : 

"  'Emollit  mores — nee  sinit  esse  penas.' 

"  Above  all  other  influences,  literature  humanizes 
the  heart,  and  at  the  same  time  it  brightens  and  invig- 
orates the  mind.  My  observation  is,  that  the  chief 
difference  between  men,  in  an  intellectual  sense,  is  the 
superior  love  of  letters  which  distinguishes  one  above 
another.  Besides,  it  is  the  rarest  thing  in  the  world  to 
see  a  bad  man  addicted  to  literature.  Converse  with 
books,  next  to  religious  principle,  is  the  best  safeguard 
against  vice.  Perhaps  you  have  read  Macaulay's  Re- 
view of  (  Boswell's  Johnson.'  It  is  a  very  brilliant 
essay,  but  is  characterized  by  all  the  splendid  faults  of 
the  writer.  Love  of  parodox,  and  a  straining  after 
effect,  impel  the  writer  to  pervert  truth.  Johnson 
was  not  the  bear  he  paints  him,  though  somewhat  rude 
from  defect  of  early  associations — and  perhaps  disease 
—  nor  was  Boswell  so  absurd  as  Macaulay  represents 
him.  His  admiration  of  his  hero  was  excessive,  and  at 
times,  ludicrous  ;  but  he  was  a  man  of  parts  and  at- 
tainments. At  times  he  got  drunk,  which  made  him, 
as  it  does  all  other  men  —  ridiculous  !  Johnson  was  a 
great  and  good  man  ;  but  he  was  greater  in  talk  than 
in  authorship ;  and  it  was  his  piety  which  tamed  the 
original  frivolity  of  his  nature.  Croker's  notes  are  hardly 
worth  reading.  He,  Croker,  was  a  violent  Tory  poli- 
tician, which  explains  Macaulay's  lashing  criticism. 

"  Read  the  review  after  you  finish  the  book.  John- 
sen's  best  production  is  the  '  Lives  of  the  Poets.' 


80  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

That  you  will  devour.  I  would  not  have  you  read 
upon  system.  It  kills  all  interest  and  sensibility.  My 
advice  to  you  is  to  read  only  worthy  books  —  I  mean 
books  of  ability  and  sound  principle,  and  to  read  thor- 
oughly. Don't  skip  frivolously  from  book  to  book ; 
and  don't  be  content  with  a  vague,  murky  impression 
of  the  author's  meaning.  Your  ideas  of  his  sense 
should  be  clear  and  complete.  I  have  great  hopes  of 
you,  my  dear  The. ;  and  I  look  confidently  to  see  you 
the  guide  and  comfort  of  my  old  age.  Be  inflexible 
and  strenuous  in  resistance  to  wrong,  and  in  pursuit  of 
the  right.  Never  do  a  mean  thing,  and  never  indulge 
an  evil  passion.  Serve  God  ;  be  kind  and  just  to  your 
fellow-men.  Honor  your  mother,  and  love  your  broth- 
ers and  sisters.  Heaven  bless  you  !  " 

The  other  letter  which  we  shall  reproduce  is  valua- 
ble as  giving  us  still  further  information  respecting  the 
development  of  Pryor's  mind,  and  his  progress  in  the 
art  of  letter- writing.  His  chirography,  referred  to  at 
length  in  this  letter  as  susceptible  of  improvement, 
was  peculiar.  He  wrote  then,  as  he  did  later  in  life,  a 
large,  round  hand,  which  once  seen  could  never  be  for- 
gotten. The  specimens  of  his  penmanship  extant  in- 
dicate a  slow  and  labored  formation  of  letters  and 
words  ;  and  although  these  reviewed  separately  have 
an  ungainly  look,  yet  the  appearance  of  the  full  writ- 
ten pages  is  rather  pleasing.  He  never  acquired  the 
coveted  ability  of  writing  an  easy,  running  hand  ;  yet 
who  shall  call  that  a  misfortune  which  was  no  material 
drawback  to  his  progress,  and  only  another  of  those 
peculiarities  which  made  him  different  from  his  fellows, 


A    REMARKABLE    BOY.  81 

and  which  he  could  afford  to  retain.  The  second  let- 
ter was  written  in  May,  1867  : 

"  MY  DEAR  SON  :  Your  letter  of  the  5th  gratified  me 
beyond  measure.  In  every  respect  your  improvement 
as  a  correspondent  is  very  evident ;  and  I  hope  soon  to 
compliment  you  as  above  criticism.  By  reading  the 
best  authors,  you  will  not  only  appropriate  their  ideas 
and  invigorate  your  thinking  faculty,  but  you  will  in- 
sensibly catch  their  art  in  composition.  Make  it  a  rule 
always  to  do  your  best,  and  never  to  be  content  with  a 
slovenly  or  imperfect  performance.  Avoid  fine  writ- 
ing, however,  by  which  I  mean  the  use  of  big  words 
and  an  artificial  mode  of  thinking.  I  take  the  letters 
of  Cowper  and  Burns  to  be  models  of  epistolary  com- 
position. Your  last  letter  was  most  pleasingly  simple 
and  unpretending,  and  that  is  the  characteristic  excel- 
lence of  this  sort  of  writing. 

"  Still,  your  penmanship  is  not  at  all  perfect,  even 
for  one  of  your  years.  Now  is  the  time  to  acquire  a 
goood  caligraphy  ;  your  handwriting  will  be  fixed  now 
for  life.  Don't  undervalue  excellence  in  this  art. 
Hear  what  a  very  learned  and  a  very  great  man  —  Dr. 
Paar  —  says  on  the  subject:  '  In  truth,  the  author, 
(Paar)  has  felt  frequent  and  serious  inconvenience  from 
his  early  and  perverse  inattention  to  an  attainment, 
the  usefulness  of  which  was  justly  appreciated  by  an 
ancient  critic.  (Quintilian,  Liber  1,  Cap  I,  page  13.) 
He  (Paar)  unfortunately  accustomed  himself  velociter 
scribe-re,  non  brevere,  and  often  has  he  been  induced  by 
his  own  painful  experience  to  recommend  Quintilian's 
observation  to  young  men,  who,  conscious  of  their  nat- 


82  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

ural  talents  and  their  literary  acquisitions,  were  dis- 
posed to  slight  good  penmanship,  as  below  the  notice 
of  a  scholar.  He  hopes  to  put  some  check  upon  the 
boyish  heedlessness  or  petty  vanity  of  other  men,  by 
reminding  them,  that  in  the  art  of  writing  Mr.  Fox, 
(the  great  orator)  was  eminently  distinguished  by  the 
clearness  and  firmness,  Mr.  Porson,  (the  great  scholar) 
by  the  correctness  and  elegance,  and  Sir  William  Jones, 
(a  scholar,  poet,  and  lawyer)  by  the  ease,  beauty  and 
variety  of  the  characters  which  they  respectively  em- 
ployed. ' 

"  I  am  at  the  trouble  to  copy  this  language,  from  the 
hope  that  it  may  make  some  impression  upon  you. 
Pray,  heed  it.  Press  forward  in  your  studies.  We'll 
see  what  -can  be  done  toward  sending  you  to  College ; 
so  be  prepared." 


CHAPTER  IX. 

COLLEGE    LIFE    AT    PRINCETON. 


"  He  has  just  arrived 

At  life's  best  season,  when  the  world  seems  all 
One  land  of  promise  ;  when  hope,  like  the  lark, 
Sings  to  the  uririsen  sun,  and  time's  dread  scythe 
Is  polished  to  a  bright  and  flattering  mirror, 
Where  youth  and  beauty  view  their  growing  image, 
And  wanton  with  the  edge." 

—  Henry  Neek. 


remained  in  the  school  of  Prof.  McCabe 
until  July,  1868 — the  close  of  the  academic 
year,  when  he  returned  to  Brooklyn  to  spend 
the  summer  with  his  family.  During  the  two  months 
following  the  all-important,  oft-discussed,  but  still  un- 
decided question  was  —  "  Shall  I  go  to  College  ?"  For 
more  than  a  year  he  had  been  fitted  to  enter  the  Fresh- 
man class  in  any  of  our  collegiate  institutions  ;  but  his 
age,  as  well  as  the  circumstances  of  the  family,  pre- 
vented him  from  doing  so.  And  now  that  he  was  pre- 
pared to  begin  college  life,  as  a  Sophomore,  the  prospect 
seemed  no  brighter  —  the  pet  dream  of  his  life,  a  col- 


84       PRYOR  I  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

lege  education,  appeared,  as  it  ever  had,  to  flee  before 
him. 

And  the  question  which  gave  so  much  anxiety  and 
trouble  to  the  son,  caused  equal  disquietude  in  the 
hearts  of  his  parents.  Many  were  the  councils  held 
in  secret,  and  long  protracted  the  frequent  but  unsatis- 
factory discussions,  which  often  lasted  far  into  the 
night.  Both  felt  that  their  boy  must  be  sent ;  and  yet 
the  way  never  seemed  clear  to  either.  And  so  it  was 
when  the  summer  was  drawing  nearer  its  close  —  the 
important  question  still  unsettled,  and  the  hour  immi- 
nent when  it  must  be  answered. 

One  morning  late  in  August,  as  Pry  or  and  his  mother 
were  returning  from  church,  he  drew  her  arm  within 
his  own,  and  turned  into  a  quiet  street,  saying  that  he 
wanted  to  speak  with  her  on  a  subject  which  had  occu- 
pied his  mind  for  months.  The  fond  mother's  heart 
anticipated  the  cause  of  her  son's  perplexity  —  had 
shared  it  with  him — but  she  said  nothing,  only  waited 
in  silence  for  the  question  which  was  earnestly  and 
sadly  put  —  "  Am  I  to  go  to  College  ?"  Before  they 
reached  home  the  great  question  was  answered  in  the 
affirmative  —  for  that  mother  then  resolved  that  he 
should  be  sent,  feeling  for  the  first  time  that  God  would 
provide  a  way  for  the  accomplishment  of  her  plans. 
This  resolution  was  speedily  communicated  to  General 
Pryor  ;  and  he  also  found  courage  at  this  important 
moment  to  second  it ;  and  so  the  matter  was  settled. 

Next  came  the  question,  "Where  shall  we  send  him  ?" 
General  Pryor's  preferences  were  for  the  University  of 
Virginia.  But  it  had  not  yet  fairly  recovered  from  the 


COLLEGE    LIFE    AT    PRINCETON.  85 

demoralizing  effects  of  the  war  ;  and  besides,  economy 
rendered  the  choice  of  some  institution  nearer  home 
imperatively  necessary.  Attention  was  next  turned  to 
Princeton — the  cosmopolitan  college,  where  students 
from  all  sections  work  harmoniously  together  —  and  it 
was  determined  that  he  should  be  sent  thither  as  a 
candidate  for  entrance  to  the  Sophomore  class. 

Early  in  September  Pryor  presented  himself  for  ex- 
amination, and  was  admitted,  as  he  modestly  stated  in 
a  letter  home,  not  to  the  Sophomore,  but  to  the  Junior 
class.  Thus  he  was  saved  the  expense  of  a  whole  year 
away  from  home,  a  great  load  was  lifted  from  the  hearts 
of  both  parents  and  son  ;  and  thus  soon  came  the  re- 
ward of  that  faith  in  God  which  had  prompted  them  to 
go  forward  trusting  to  Providence  for  means  of  over- 
coming all  difficulties  as  they  might  be  presented. 

The  choice  of  Princeton  was  a  fortunate  one.  It 
had  just  elected,  as  the  successor  of  the  veteran  Presi- 
dent, Dr.  Maclean,  the  renowned  author  and  meta- 
physician, Dr.  James  McCosh.  The  college  was  in  a 
transition  state  —  old  things  were  passing  away,  and 
the  spirit  of  improvement  wrought  great  and  speedy 
changes  in  the  college  curriculum.  The  second  of  the 
two  great  eras  referred  to  by  the  Hon.  Wm.  C.  Alex- 
ander in  his  address  of  welcome  to  Dr.  McCosh,  had 
just  now  come.  •"  The  first  was  in  1768,  when  on  the 
death  of  Dr.  Finley,  the  trustees,  anxious  to  extend 
the  fame  and  enlarge  the  influence  and  usefulness  of 
the  institution,  cast  their  eyes  across  the  Atlantic,  and 
in  the  person  of  Dr.  John  Witherspoon,  of  Scotland, 
saw  one  who  was  eminently  fitted  to  supply  the  wants 
7 


86  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

of  the  institution.  They  brought  him  to  preside  over 
the  college.  He  added  to  European  education  and 
great  theological  and  scholastic  attainments,  a  profound 
knowledge  of  the  science  of  government.  He  had  a 
strong  sympathy  and  affection  for  popular  rights,  which 
had  been  engendered,  fostered,  and  cultured  in  the  wars 
and  contests  waged  by  him  against  the  claims  of  privi- 
lege and  patronage  in  his  own  church.  No  man  can 
carefully  examine  the  history  of  the  college  and  the 
times,  without  being  impressed  with  the  wonderful  in- 
fluence which  that  extraordinary  man  exercised  on  the 
cause,  progress  and  success  of  human  liberty,  and  the 
destinies  of  the  country.  He  seems  to  have  imbued 
the  mind  of  every  pupil  with  an  ardent  love  of  liberty, 
and  to  have  moulded  the  minds  and  characters  of  the 
future  men  of  the  country,  and  prepared  them  for  the 
proud  and  distinguished  part  which  many  of  them  were 
destined  to  perform  in  the  great  political  drama  then 
about  to  be  enacted." 

It  was  at  the  beginning  of  the  second  era  that  Pry  or 
entered  Princeton,  when  "the  presidency  of  the  col- 
lege again  becoming  vacant,  the  trustees,  animated 
with  the  same  feeling  that  governed  their  predecessors 
one  hundred  years  before,  desirous  to  extend  the  fame 
and  enlarge  the  influence  of  the  college,  again  cast 
their  eyes  across  the  Atlantic  to  summon  to  the  presi- 
dency of  the  college  one  whose  reputation  is  not 
confined  to  countries  where  the  English  language  is 
spoken,  but  extends  as  far  as  mental  science  is  known. " 
The  inauguration  of  Dr.  McCosh,  thus  referred  to, 
took  place  on  October  27th,  and  he  at  once  entered 


COLLEGE    LIFE    AT    PRINCETON.  87 

upon  the  duties  of  his  office,  and  assumed  the  charge 
of  the  various  classes  in  religious  and  philosophical 
studies.  Pry  or  was  among  those  who  were  first  priv- 
ileged to  sit  at  the  feet  of  this  great  instructor  at 
Princeton,  to  receive  the  words  of  wisdom  that  dropped 
from  his  lips.  And  never  had  the  good  Doctor  a  more 
faithful  or  more  appreciative  pupil  than  this  stripling 
who  sat  modestly  before  him,  listening,  remembering, 
and  on  occasion  reproducing  with  astonishing  minute- 
ness and  wonderful  appreciation,  the  garnered  wisdom 
of  his  good  teacher.  The  attention  of  the  President 
was  early  drawn  to  this,  his  most  promising  and  preco- 
cious pupil,  and  after  a  short  period  of  closer  contact, 
as  a  friend,  he  learned  to  love  him  as  his  own  son. 
The  testimony  of  that  affection,  as  well  as  his  estimate 
of  the  intellectual  powers  and  capabilities  exhibited  by 
his  "young friend,"  are  given  elsewhere,  and  need  not 
be  repeated  here. 

The  class  with  which  Pryor  became  connected  was 
large,  up  to  that  time  the  largest  ever  gathered  at 
Princeton,  having  on  its  Junior  catalogue  eighty-six 
names.  Entering  as  he  did,  when  the  class  had  already 
half  finished  its  course,  he  was  the  subject  of  consider- 
able attention  and  some  criticism.  He  was  an  entire 
stranger  to  his  classmates,  the  report  of  his  school  suc- 
cesses had  not  preceded  him,  and  his  abilities  were  all 
unknown  to  his  new  competitors.  His  initial  threw 
him  into  the  second  division  of  the  class,  and  the  occa- 
sion of  his  first  recitation  will  never  be  forgotten  by 
that  portion  which  heard  him.  At  the  sound  of  his 
name  he  rose  promptly  to  his  feet,  stood  erect,  and 


88  PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

folding  his  arms,  as  his  custom  was  at  such  times, 
calmly  waited  for  the  questions.  With  scarely  a  sec- 
ond for  deliberation,  he  quickly  gave  answers  covering 
the  whole  ground  of  the  questions,  as  they  were  put  to 
him  in  rapid  succession.  Not  a  superfluous  or  irrele- 
vant word  escaped  his  lips  ;  there  was  no  blundering, 
not  even  the  utterance  of  a  sentence  which  was  defect- 
ive in  its  construction ;  but  clear,  concise,  and  exact 
replies  followed  each  interrogation.  Whether  the 
professor  confined  himself  to  the  text  or  propounded  a 
side  question,  it  was  the  same  ;  he  was  perfectly  at 
home,  and  sometimes  displayed  acquaintance  with 
kindred  subjects  which  was  remarkable.  His  reputa- 
tion for  scholarship  was  made  by  his  first  recitation, 
and  established  and  maintained  by  all  succeeding 
ones.  Students  testified  their  pleasure  in  hearty  stu- 
dent style,  applauding  him  to  the  echo  ;  Professors 
smiled  their  approval,  and  to  strangers  he  was  pointed 
out  as  a  wonder.  And  this  brilliancy  was  not  the 
exception  but  the  uniform  rule.  From  first  to  last, 
always  and  under  all  circumstances,  it  was  the  same. 
Long  before  the  session  ended  or  the  grades  were  pre- 
pared, universal  opinion  pointed  to  him  as  the  first 
man  of  his  class ;  and  this  estimate  received  confirma- 
tion in  the  fact — he  gained  that  honor  and  kept  it 
throughout  his  course. 

The  question  has  often  been  asked  whether  Pryor 
obtained  and  held  this  high  position  easily,  or  with 
difnculty.  He  had  many  strong  competitors.  The 
class  of  which  he  was  a  member  was  intellectually  as 
well  as  numerically  strong.  There  were  many  vigor- 


COLLEGE    LIFE    AT    PRINCETON.  89 

ous  minds  opposed  to  him,  that  were  excited  and 
spurred  on  by  great  ambition.  And  these  never  hesi- 
tated to  confess  that  the  battle  was  a  hard  one,  requir- 
ing a  careful  mustering  as  well  as  a  skillful  marshalling 
of  forces.  They  were  little  on  the  play-ground  and 
much  in  their  rooms.  They  talked  often  of  the  l  i  mid- 
night oil,"  and  wore  in  their  countenances  the  lines 
which  labor  makes.  But  not  so  with  Pry  or.  He  was 
not  a  hermit.  If  he  was  not  an  athlete,  nor  often 
found  participating  in  their  sports,  he  was,  at  times, 
an  interested  observer,  and  his  face  was  not  an  unfa- 
miliar one  at  the  ball-ground,  in  the  gymnasium,  or 
on  the  daily  walk.  He  ate  well,  slept  well,  rarely 
denying  himself  his  regular  rest,  and  always  had  a 
leisure  moment  for  the  entertainment  of  a  friend. 
His  evenings  were  rarely  busy  ones.  But  he  worked 
during  the  day,  faithfully,  earnestly,  systematically, 
manfully.  When  he  converted  his  room  into  a  work- 
shop there  was  no  loitering,  no  frivolity,  no  play — but 
work  that  rebuked  the  loiterer  who  chanced  to  behold 
it,  that  shamed  the  frivolous,  and  sent  the  idler  to  his 
neglected  tasks.  Students  saw  and  wondered  ;  then, 
catching  his  enthusiasm,  endeavored  to  go  and  do  like- 
wise. He  raised  the  standard  of  scholarship ,  in  his 
class,  and  it  is  not  saying  too  much  to  affirm  that  his 
influence  was  felt  by  every  member  of  it.  True,  no 
one  ever  competed  successfully  with  him.  He  was, 
intellectually  speaking,  head  and  shoulders  taller  than 
the  tallest  in  his  class.  But  there  was  strong  and 
determined  effort  to  surpass  him,  for  all  that. 

Immediately  after  matriculation,  Pry  or  was  elected 


90          PKYOK:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

a  member  and  invited  into  the  mysteries  of  the 
* '  American  Whig  Society."  An  explanation  of  this 
title,  which  forms  the  caption  of  the  present  chapter, 
may  be  necessary  for  the  enlightenment  of  some  of 
our  readers.*  "In  the  division  of  sentiment  that 
occurred  just  previons  to  the  Revolution,  those  who 
advocated  the  cause  and  rights  of  the  colonies,  like 
the  liberal  party  in  England,  assumed  the  name  of 
Whigs,  while  those  who  adhered  to  the  side  of  the 
crown  were  called  Tories.  The  great  issues  of  the  day 
were  the  constant  theme  of  conversation  :  in  England, 
Burke,  and  Chatham,  and  Fox  were  arrayed  against 
Mansfield  and  North.  The  thunders  of  their  eloquence 
were  borne  across  the  broad  Atlantic,  and  fell  upon 
ears  that  were  trained  to  catch  even  the  feeblest  whis- 
pers of  those  who  were  pleading  the  cause  of  liberty 
and  the  rights  of  the  people.  An  ardent  lover  of 
libertyt  presided  over  Nassau  Hall,  and  from  his 
instructions  the  students  learned  the  lessons  of  free- 
dom. The  sacred  fire  kindled  in  Nassau  Hall  was 
fanned  by  invigorating  breezes  that  swept  from  distant 
lands,  and  every  youthful  heart  was  inspired,  not 
merely  with  the  love  of  learning  that  had  drawn  its 
possessor  within  these  walls,  but  with  a  love  for  the 
eternal  principles  of  truth  and  liberty,  and  an  undying 
devotion  to  their  fatherland.  It  was  amid  scenes  like 
these,  and  at  such  a  momentous  period  of  the  world, 
that  a  noble  band  of  young  men  with  James  Madison 

*History  of  the  American  Whig  Society,  page  10 . 
tjohn  Witherspoon,  signer  of  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence. 


COLLEGE    LIFE    AT    PRINCETON.  91 

(afterwards  President  of  the  United  States)  as  their 
leader,  formed  a  society  for  the  cultivation  of  elo- 
quence and  literature.  Their  young  hearts  glowed 
with  patriotism,  and  gave  to  this  society,  in  which 
they  were  united  by  the  three-fold  cord  of  literature, 
friendship  and  morality,  the  name  of  AMERICAN  WHIG; 
a  name  that  appeals  to  all  who  delight  to  dwell  upon 
the  history  of  their  country,  and  which  falls  like  angel 
music  upon  the  ears  of  her  sons." 

This  society  and  the  "  Cliosophic "  are  the  only 
secret  organizations  that  exist  at  Princeton,  the  forma- 
tion of  any  others  being  forbidden  by  an  act  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  passed  at  their  meeting  on  the  28th 
of  June,  1855.  The  past  history  and  present  character 
of  these  two  societies,  which  we  believe  to  be  about 
equal  in  point  of  interest  and  merit,  give  them  a 
prominent  place  among  the  college  institutions.  They 
are  purely  literary  in  their  character,  being  designed 
to  supplement  the  regular  classical  and  scientific  course 
of  studies.  The  students  govern  themselves,  making 
and  executing  their  own  laws,  and  are  virtually  inde- 
pendent of  all  college  authority  in  matters  pertaining 
to  their  respective  societies.  The  proceedings  are 
characterized  by  a  dignity  and  decorum  rarely,  if  ever, 
found  in  organizations  of  a  like  character.  Their  laws, 
brought  to  a  high  state  of  perfection,  during  the  hun- 
dred or  more  years  of  their  history,  are  well  nigh 
faultless,  and  the  course  of  literary  training  and  legal 
discipline  which  the  members  of  both  societies  receiye, 
combine  to  fit  them  in  an  eminent  degree  for  the  prac- 
tical duties  of  life. 


92  PRYOK  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

"  They  were  originated,"  says  the  historian  of  the 
Cliosophic  Society,  "  with  these  great  objects  in  view  : 
The  improvement  of  the  mind,  the  expansion  of  the 
intellect,  the  culture  of  the  heart  and  the  promotion  of 
close  and  lasting  friendships.  They  aim  to  give  a 
practical  tone  to  abstract  study,  to  furnish  a  field  for 
the  exercise  of  those  powers  which  Latin,  Greek,  sci- 
ence, mathematics,  and  metaphysics  awaken  in  the 
mind.  They  introduce  the  scholastic  student  to  the 
great  world  in  miniature,  launch  him  into  the  active 
sympathies  of  life,  into  the  contested  questions  of  lit- 
erature, art,  history,  and  morals  ;  sympathies  and 
questions  of  which  he  would  otherwise,  in  all  proba- 
bility, be  ignorant  or  regardless.  They  furnish  the 
play-ground  and  arena,  the  palaestra,  the  forum,  the 
agora,  in  which  new-born  vigor  is  exercised  and  trained. 
It  is  here  that  the  faculties  acquired  are  first  applied, 
and  here  are  the  prelude  and  preparation  for  the  pub- 
lic labors  and  conflicts  of  real  life.  While  then  we 
greet  the  COLLEGE  as  the  gracious  mother  of  our  intel- 
lectual life,  from  whose  full  breasts  we  drew  the  nutri- 
ment of  learning,  we  love  to  think  of  our  societies  as 
her  fair  offspring. 

1 '  We  speak,  remembering  the  oft-repeated  opinions 
of  many  great  men  who  have  graduated  from  these  in- 
stitutions. Eeapers  from  the  fruitful  fields  of  life, 
laden  with  the  heavy  sheaves  of  experience,  they  have 
endeavored  to  impress  upon  others  the  importance  of 
this  portion  of  the  college  education.  They  declare 
that  to  these  Societies  they  are  indebted  for  the  train- 
ing that  made  them  successful  men  ;  that  in  them  they 


COLLEGE    LIFE    AT    PRINCETON.  93 

learned  to  think  for  themselves,  and  say  what  they 
thought  ;  that  in  them  they  found  immediate  contact 
with  other  men,  and  received  that  more  perfect  polish 
which  such  attrition  alone  can  give  ;  that  in  them  lies 
a  plain,  practical  usefulness,  not  to  be  neglected  and 
shunned,  but  cherished  and  sought  after." 

"  Let  me  express,"  said  George  M.  Dallas,  five  years 
after  graduating,  "  my  high  estimation  and  affectionate 
remembrance  of  my  Society,  its  principles,  its  practice, 
its  discipline,  and  its  admirable  influence  upon  those 
who  are  fortunate  to  become  its  members.  Whatever 
reputation  I  have  obtained  by  a  successful  college 
course,  must  be  attributed  to  the  generous  emulation 
it  encouraged.  And  whatever  lasting  useful  instruction 
I  reaped  during  those  three  years  of  literary  toil  would 
have  proved  but  transitory,  had  not  the  impressive 
scenes  and  exercises  of  our  hall  stamped  it  indelibly 
upon  my  memory.  The  most  valued  friendships  I  pos- 
sess were  formed  upon  its  floor,  and  in  the  ardor  of  its 
literary  competitons. " 

Such  is  the  character  of  the  American  Whig  and 
Cliosophic  Societies,  the  former  of  which  Pryor  became 
connected  with,  as  we  have  said,  shortly  after  his  en- 
trance into  college.  His  success  in  the  class-room 
had  been  perfect.  Men  now  waited  to  see  how  he 
would  perform  his  part  in  the  literary  society.  For 
students  have  a  poor  opinion  of  the  book- worm,  and 
unless  brilliant  recitations  are  accompanied  by  plainer 
and  more  substantial  accomplishments,  they  pass  only 
for  what  they  are  worth.  College  communities  are  ex- 
tremely democratic  ;  worth  never  remains  long  in  con- 


94  PRYOR  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

cealment,  and  each  member  of  the  community  speedily 
finds  his  place,  and  is  labelled  with  an  estimate  of  his 
true  value.  So  these  are  rare  critics,  and  men  are  not 
slow  to  express  an  opinion.  This  is  eminently  true  of 
their  Societies.  Let  a  man  fail  there,  let  him  exhibit 
a  lack  of  tact,  or  show  himself  unequal  to  an  emerg- 
ency, and  he  falls  behind  the  shrewd  manipulator,  the 
ready  thinker,  the  interesting  writer,  and  the  effective 
debater. 

Pryor  made  his  debut  in  the  literary  society  as  a 
writer.  An  essay  was  assigned  him,  which  was  written 
and  read  to  the  assembled  nabobs.  Criticism  hung  fire. 
The  effort  was  quiet,  matter-of-fact,  full  of  common 
sense,  (we  ought  to  reject  such  a  misnomer,  and  say 
uncommon  sense)  and  so  carefully  expressed  withal, 
that  it  received  nothing  but  commendation.  Other  pro- 
ductions which  quickly  followed  this,  fixed  his  reputa- 
tion as  an  essayist.  He  was  considered  sensible  rather 
than  brilliant,  dealing  in  "  the  evergreens  of  truth  " 
rather  than  "the  flowers  of  rhetoric,"  scarcely  ever 
odd  in  his  opinions,  and  never  unpleasant  in  the 
expression  of  them  ;  calm,  easy,  dignified,  rarely  excit- 
ing adverse  criticism,  and  always  interesting  by  clear- 
ness and  method,  rather  than  by  originality. 

His  ability  received  a  severer  test  in  debate  ;  but  in 
this  he  exhibited  unmistakable  excellence.  He  was 
great  here.  Possessing  the  three  prime  essentials  to 
success,  a  well  stored  mind,  great  clearness  of  expres- 
sion, and  remarkable  analytic  power,  he  was  invincible 
to  the  strongest  adversary.  The  sharpest  and  shrewd- 
est opponents  were  pitted  against  him  ;  they  united  in 


COLLEGE  LIFE  AT  PRINCETON.        95 

their  endeavors  to  perplex  him ;  but  even  with  every 
advantage  in  their  favor,  the  preponderance  of  num- 
bers, the  popular  side  of  the  question,  and  the  sympa- 
thies of  the  audience,  the  victory  was  always  his,  and 
defeat  and  discomfiture  the  portion  of  his  adversaries. 
But  it  was  in  the  exercise  of  authority  as  an  execu- 
tive that  he  won  his  greatest  triumphs.  It  came  his 
turn  to  rule.  The  votes  of  his  fellows  placed  him  in  a 
position  where  it  devolved  upon  him  to  administer  au- 
thority, to  pass  judgment,  and  to  give  his  opinions 
upon  such  questions  as  arise  in  every  deliberative  as- 
sembly. His  duties  were  sometimes  unpleasant,  often 
difficult,  and  always  demanded  considerable  tact  for 
their  proper  discharge.  There  were  excitements  to 
control,  fair  play  to  be  secured  in  fierce  battles  of 
words,  personalities  to  be  discouraged,  petty  bickerings 
and  quarrellings  to  be  rebuked,  difficulties  of  various 
kinds  to  be  adjusted,  and  general  good  order  to  be  pre- 
served. Once  he  was  the  victim  of  a  plot,  carefully 
preconcerted,  and  designed  to  discomfit  him,  if  that 
were  possible.  All  the  elements  of  confusion,  disorder, 
and  distraction,  were  to  be  introduced  in  a  certain  meet- 
ing over  which  he  was  to  preside.  The  time  came,  and 
the  Society  organized  for  business,  and  the  plot  began 
to  work  —  successfully  at  first  —  for  Pry  or  was  con- 
founded by  circumstances  so  unusual.  But  he  speedily 
recovered  himself  ;  and,  sitting  erect,  fixed  his  piercing 
eyes  on  the  noisy  audience,  and  commanded  order. 
Quiet  was  restored.;  but  his  troubles  did  not  end  here. 
The  main  object  of  the  plotters  was  to  see  whether 
they  could  not  perplex  or  confound  him  on  some  point 


96  PRYOR  I    A    BIOGRAHPTCAL    STUDY. 

of  law.  A  measure  was  accordingly  introduced,  and 
opened  for  discussion.  Youthful  ingenuity  did  its 
best,  using  the  most  unfair  advantages,  but  in  vain. 
He  was  never  bothered  for  a  moment.  His  clear  mind 
saw  through  everything  ;  and  his  opinions  were  given 
in  a  manner  that  utterly  discouraged  the  hope  of  being 
able  to  corner  him.  He  invariably  saw  a  way  out  of 
difficulty,  and  was  not  long  in  using  it.  They  gave  it 
up  at  last,  acknowledging  an  ignominous  defeat,  and 
were  generous  enough  afterwards  to  mingle  their  apolo- 
gies and  congratulations.  The  farce  was  never  repeat- 
ed— men  were  satisfied  that  he  was  one 

"  Whose  steady  will 

No  force  could  daunt,  no  tangled  path  divert 
From  its  right  onward  purpose." 


CHAPTER  X. 

LITERARY  LAURELS. 

'  As  a  fossil  in  the  rock, 
Or  a  coin  in  the  mortar  of  a  rain, 
So  the  symbolled  thoughts 
Tell  of  a  departed  soul ; 

The  plastic  hand  hath  its  witness  in  a  statue, 
And  exactitude  of  vision  in  a  picture ; 
And  so  the  mind,  that  was  among  us, 
In  its  writings  is  embalmed." 

— Proverbial  Philosophy. 

)BERT  SOUTHEY,  while  admitting*  "that 
we  need  encouragement  in  youth,  and  that 
praise  is  the  sunshine,  without  which  genius 
will  wither,  fade,  and  die  ;  or  rather,  in  search  of 
which,  like  a  plant  that  is  debarred  from  it,  will  push 
forth  in  contortions  and  deformity,"  condemns  the 
practice  of  writing  for  prizes,  as  teaching  youth  "  to 
look  for  applause  instead  of  being  satisfied  with  appro- 
bation, and  fostering  in  them  that  vanity  which  needs 
no  cherishing.  This,"  says  he,  "  is  administering 
stimulant  to  the  heart,  instead  of  ( feeding  it  with  food 
convenient  for  it ' ;  and  the  effect  of  such  stimulants  is 

*  Life  of  Henry  Kirke  White,  p.  11. 


98          PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

to  dwarf  the  human  mind,  as  lap-dogs  are  said  to  be 
stopped  in  their  growth  by  being  dosed  with  gin. 
Thus  forced)  it  becomes  like  the  sapling  which  shoots 
up  when  it  should  be  striking  its  roots  far  and  deep, 
and  which  therefore  never  attains  to  more  than  sap- 
ling's size." 

With  all  deference  to  so  great  an  authority,  we  hold 
to  the  opinion  that  emulation  is  useful,  and  that  the 
promise  of  reward,  either  in  the  way  of  praise  or  profit, 
is  a  legitimate  method  of  exciting  youth  to  the  highest 
distinction  possible  in  its  sphere.  It  may  not  be  the 
lot  of  many  to  achieve  any  great  success ;  but  even 
where  the  results  are  not  commensurate  with  the  ef- 
forts put  forth,  no  labor  in  this  direction  can  truly  be 
said  to  be  lost.  As  to  approbation  fostering  vanity, 
we  are  not  so  much  alarmed  for  that.  Merit  is  not 
often  injured  by  compliment,  or  made  hurtful  to  its 
possessor  by  excessive  praise.  On  the  contrary,  there 
is  great  danger  that  genius  will  be  overlooked  and 
neglected.  Therefore  all  disposition  to  improvement 
in  youth  should  be  encouraged;  and  as  the  best  fruits 
of  inventive  genius  are  obtained  by  securing  to  inven- 
tors the  results  of  their  ingenuity,  under  the  protec- 
tion of  patents,  so  to  secure  the  best  intellectual 
development,  a  premium  is  wisely  placed  on  the  pro- 
ducts of  mental  labor,  allowing  not  only  the  ' i  sun- 
shine of  praise,"  but  also  those  substantial  returns 
for  which  there  is  more  frequently  need ! 

Princeton  College,  under  the  new  regime,  has  testi- 
fied to  the  wisdom  of  this  policy,  by  establishing  a 
great  variety  of  fellowships  and  prizes,  to  secure  a 


LITERARY    LAURELS.  99 

healthy  rivalry  among  its  students  and  elevate  the 
grade  of  scholarship.  The  list  of  these  "  special  in- 
centives to  study"  now  includes  a  large  number  of 
prizes  of  recent  foundation ;  but  of  the  number  open 
to  competition  in  1870,  it  is  conceded  that  Pryor  might 
certainly  have  taken  any  one,  and  perhaps  more  than 
one,  if  the  privilege  had  been  extended  to  him. 

At  the  time  when  he  entered  college,  these  rewards 
had  not  yet  been  instituted.  Each  society,  however, 
gave  several  prizes  annually  for  excellence  in  oratory, 
debate,  and  composition.  But  the  prizes  which  then 
held  a  place  quite  as  important  as  some  of  those  more 
recently  established,  were  offered  by  the  "  Nassau  Lit- 
erary Magazine. "  This  quarterly,  established  more  than 
thirty-eight  years  ago,  is  conducted  entirely  by  the  stu- 
dents, and  has  been  made  to  play  quite  an  important 
part  in  their  literary  education  and  training.  Some  of 
the  most  gifted  minds  which  the  country  has  produced, 
appeared  for  the  first  time  as  authors  in  the  modest 
effusions  contributed  to  its  pages.  Shrinking  from 
public  criticism,  they  ventured  to  submit  their  pro- 
ductions to  the  protection  of  this  magazine ;  and  many 
a  literary  gem  has  thus  been  rescued  from  oblivion, 
and  attracted  to  the  author  that  attention  which  has 
ripened,  by  his  maturer  efforts,  into  admiration.  And 
so,  by  preserving  much  that  would  otherwise  never 
have  met  the  public  eye,  it  has  diffused  in  a  way 
unknown  to  any  other  channel  a  taste  for  intellectual 
beauty. 

As  a  register  of  passing  events,  this  periodical  com- 
bines in  an  eminent  degree  two  of  the  great  attributes 


100         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

which  Cicero  ascribes  to  history.  It  is  not  only  the 
"  testis  temporutn,"  but  the  "  vita  memorice  " — preserv- 
ing facts  not  unworthy  of  record,  and  chronicling 
much  that  adds  to  its  usefulness  and  interest.  The 
student  turns  to  it  with  veneration ;  for  it  is  the  record 
of  daily  college  life,  and  carries  him  back  into  the 
presence  of  his  predecessors,  so  that  he  walks  with 
them,  as  it  were,  amidst  the  foundations  of  the  old 
institution  and  of  its  prosperity.  In  its  ' c  memorabilia  " 
he  reads  of  many  things  as  the  occurrences  of  the  day, 
which  have  since  become  interwoven  with  the  history 
of  the  country ;  and  it  is  only  to  be  regretted  that  the 
early  periodicals  of  Princeton  College  have  not  been 
more  regularly  preserved  in  their  day,  with  a  spirit 
prophetic  of  their  future  value. 

But  to  return.  The  prizes  offered  by  the  "  Nassau 
Literary  Magazine  "  were  open  for  competition  to  the 
class  of  70  for  the  first  time  in  the  summer  of  1868 ;  and 
of  the  twenty  awarded  while  the  class  were  in  college, 
three-fifths  were  won  by  Pryor's  class-mates.  The  first 
prize  gained  by  a  member  of  the  class  was  in  April,  1868, 
and  the  successful  essay  was  published  while  its  au- 
thor was  still  a  sophomore ;  an  event  unknown  in  the 
previous  history  of  the  magazine. 

The  seeds  of  talent,  wherever  they  are  sown,  cannot 
fail  to  spring  up  under  proper  fostering  influences. 
And  so  the  activity  of  Pryor's  mind  was  awakened, 
and  the  success  of  others  impelled  him  to  exert  him- 
self in  the  same  direction.  In  the  spring  of  1869, 
while  a  junior,  he  prepared  a  paper  on  "  History" 
which  was  submitted  among  fifteen  other  competing 


LITERARY    LAURELS.  101 

essays  fertile  prize  in  the  June  number  of  the  magazine. 

Accompanying  the  manuscript  was  a  little  note 
to  the  editor,  stating  that  if  his  essay  should  be  suc- 
cessful, he  would  prefer  to  appear  as  a  resident  of 
Virginia,  notwithstanding  his  home  was  then  at  Brook- 
lyn, New  York.  So  familiar  was  the  editor  with  Pry- 
or's  peculiar  chirography,  that  he  did  not  deem  it 
necessary  to  open  the  envelope  to  ascertain  the  author's 
name,  when  the  essay  was  returned  as  the  successful 
one,  and  the  manuscript  was  sent  to  the  printer  with- 
out this  being  done.  A  few  days  later,  however,  the 
editor  opened  the  envelope,  and  found  with  tne  real 
name  and  nom  de  plume  of  the  author  the  note  before 
mentioned.  The  printer  was  notified  just  in  time  to 
make  the  necessary  correction,  and  in  accordance  with 
Pryor's  wishes  he  appeared-  in  print  as  a  Virginian. 
These  facts  are  mentioned  as  indicating  something  of 
that  strong  and  unchanging  love  for  his  native  State 
which  he  never  lost.  He  never  acknowledged  himself 
the  son  of  any  other  than  the  "  Old  Dominion,"  where 
his  childhood  and  youth  were  spent.  On  several  oc- 
casions he  was  observed  to  take  particular  pains  to 
avoid  being  accredited  to  any  other  State. 

His  prize  essay  was  published  in  June,  1869,  and 
was  only  the  third  in  the  whole  history  of  the  maga- 
zine written  by  an  uncler-classman.  His  triumph  was 
rendered  more  remarkable  by  the  fact  of  his  extreme 
youth,  and  the  large  numbers  of  excellent  writers  com- 
peting with  him.  This  was  his  contribution  to  the 
literary  reputation  of  the  class  which  had  already  be- 
come famous  in  the  college.  Of  the  merits  of  the 
8 


1042  PRYOR:    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

essay  we  shall  say  nothing.  We  choose  to  let  it  speak 
for  itself.  It  has  been  reproduced  in  these  pages,  not 
as  an  evidence  of  the  author's  genius — we  shall  give 
other  and  better  proof  of  this — but  because  all  his 
efforts  in  composition,  and  among  them  many  which 
we  would  take  great  pleasure  in  presenting,  were  de- 
stroyed by  him  after  they  had  served  the  purpose  for 
which  they  were  written.  We  give  his  prize  essay  just 
as  it  was  published  : 

"  HISTORY. 

"  PRIZE    ESSAY — BY    THEODORICK    B.    PRYOR,    VA. 

"  It  is  a  great  advantage  in  the  pursuit  of  Truth,  that 
every  step  of  her  votary  rewards  him,  not  more  by  its 
immediate  fruits,  than  by  the  increased  distinctness  of 
his  path  and  the  nearer  prospect  of  his  goal.  Like 
Bunyan's  pilgrim,  the  latter  stages  of  his  course  show 
fascinations  to  which  he  was  a  stranger ;  but  they  are 
chiefly  prized  for  their  clearer  and  clearer  glimpses  of 
the  Celestial  City,  till,  in  the  Land  of  Beulah,  it  bursts 
upon  his  view  in  all  its  glories. 

' l  But  the  progress  in  some  cases  is  but  slow  ;  the 
philosopher  may  encounter  a  mass  of  facts  so  great  and 
intricate  as  long  to  set  order  at  defiance,  and  conceal 
from  view  his  true  object  and  the  means  for  attaining 
it.  Such  is  the  difficulty  respecting  history,  concern- 
ing which  the  most  various  ideas  have  prevailed,  but 
none  that  assign  to  it  its  proper  place  among  the  sci- 
ences. It  will  be  our  object,  first  to  determine  this, 


LITERARY    LAURELS.  103 

and  then  to  decide  upon  the  plan  best  pursued  in  its 
composition. 

"It  is  well  known,  that,  to  be  complete,  every  material 
science  must  embrace  the  two  processes  of  analysis  and 
synthesis.  From  the  vast  number  of  details  which  are 
present  to  the  philosopher,  he  must  discover  the  hid- 
den laws  and  causes  of  their  seeming  confusion.  This 
task  is  difficult ;  but  it  is  not  alone  sufficient  to  elicit 
order  out  of  the  surrounding  chaos.  He  has  .found 
the  spell  which  will  free  Truth  from  the  labyrinth 
in  which  she  is  enchanted,  but  it  has  not  yet  been 
spoken.  It  is  further  necessary  that  he  should  turn 
again  to  the  region  of  facts,  and  apply  his  princi- 
ples to  the  phenomena  from  which  they  have  been 
derived.  By  them,  he  explains  changes  formerly 
wrapt  in  mystery.  He  follows  them  to  their  remotest 
consequences,  observing  the  coincidence  of  what  oc- 
curs with  the  results  they  enable  him  to  predict ;  and 
thus  inspired  with  renewed  confidence  in  their  truth, 
he  may  hazard  a  searching  glance  into  the  gloom  of 
the  future. 

"Few  sciences  are  sufficiently  mature  to  give  an  ex- 
ample of  both  these  processes.  Of  those  that  are,  we 
instance  astronomy.  Its  principal  laws  have  long  been 
known,  and  its  further  progress  has  chiefly  consisted  in 
deductions  founded  upon  them.  Suppose  this  science 
were  arrived  at  its  highest  degree  of  perfection.  A 
complete  exposition  of  it  would  place  first  before  the 
reader  those  particular  facts  which  were  chosen  as  the 
basis  upon  which  to  found  all  the  subsequent  reasoning. 
It  would  thence  obtain  every  general  principle  of  im- 


104  PliYOR  I    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

portance  either  in  itself  or  in  its  bearing — the  laws  of 
matter  and  motion,  especially  that  grand  one  of  gravi- 
tation. It  might  then  fix  upon  some  special  part  of 
the  universe  and  some  definite  portion  of  time ;  and 
exhibit  in  order  the  various  changes  which  take  place 
in  the  limits  assigned ;  showing  the  orbit  of  each  star 
and  planet,  and  the  different  forms  it  successively  takes  ; 
the  striking  phenomena  of  comets  and  meteors,  and 
the  regular  course  of  the  days  and  seasons ;  reconciling 
facts  the  most  discrepant,  and  explaining  appearances 
the  most  deceitful ;  but  treating  them  all  as  conse- 
quences of  those  fundamental  rules  whose  investigation 
formed  the  first  object  of  inquiry.  Or,  if  possible, 
the  author  might  confine  himself  to  no  limits  of  time 
or  space,  but,  taking  advantage  of  the  recurrence  of 
events  in  an  infinite  but  repeating  series,  he  might 
embrace  the  universe  in  his  speculations,  and  describe 
the  recurring  changes  which  will  happen  through  all 
eternity.  In  the  case  taken  as  an  example,  this  may 
some  day  be  accomplished ;  but  in  most  instances  the 
limited  faculties  of  man  must  be  content  with  a  much 
narrower  field. 

' 'Now,  philosophic  history  has  been  well  defined  as 
an  attempt  to  trace  a  set  of  causes  in  producing  their 
successive  effects.  This  coincides  precisely  with  the 
synthetic  process  in  every  material  science.  Were  it 
required  to  relate  philosophically  the  heavenly  motions, 
it  could  be  done  only  by  showing  them  in  order  as  the 
continued  workings  of  those  laws  to  which  they  are  all 
subj  ect . 

1  'History,  then,  forms  an   essential  part  of  every 


LITERARY    LAURELS.  105 

science  which  deals  with  actual  being.  But  the  history 
here  meant  must  be  distinguished  from  that  which  is 
sometimes  shown  as  one  of  the  three  divisions  of  each 
branch  of  philosophy.  The  one  details  the  successive 
changes  which  take  place  in  a  certain  department ;  the 
other  gives  the  successive  opinions  which  have  pre- 
vailed concerning  them.  The  one  is  a  history  of  the 
objects  of  a  science,  the  other  of  the  science  itself. 
The  former  includes  the  latter,  since  the  progress  of 
each  science  is  at  least  a  principal  topic  in  a  general 
history  of  civilization.  Such  a  history  would  be  much 
more  properly  regarded  as  a  single  division  of  learning, 
than  as  belonging  to  a  number  of  such  divisions  en- 
tirely distinct  from  one  another.  If  the  progress  of 
the  sciences  be  given  philosophically,  each  one  is  so 
intimately  connected  with  the  others  as  respects  the 
causes  of  its  advance,  that  they  should  all  be  treated 
together.  If  it  be  not  so  given,  the  history  of  a  science 
is  not  itself  a  portion  of  a  science,  and  has  no  right  to 
be  considered  such. 

"  History,  then,  in  its  most,  general  meaning,  forms 
an  essential  part  of  every  science.  But  if  confined  to 
its  more  common  signification,  it  will  refer  only  to  the 
affairs  of  mankind  when  combined  in  societies  ;  and, 
consequently,  belongs  to  social  physics,  which  contains 
the  various  branches  of  '  law,  political  economy,  and 
the  like. '  Their  object  has  long  been  considered  to 
be  the  discovery  of  general  principles ;  but  they  have 
a  no  less  important  office  in  tracing  their  successive 
influence  in  the  history  of  the  human  race. 

"  Complete  success  in  the  study  we  are  considering 


106         PRYGK;  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STTDY. 

requires  that  these  be  first  fully  developed.  The  re- 
verse of  this  has  commonly  been  held,  and  it  has  been 
often  asserted  that  history  lies  at  the  root  of  all  specu- 
lations on  the  best  forms  of  government  or  policy  of  a 
state.  If  this  means  that  such  can  only  be  sound  when 
founded  on  a  large  induction  from  facts,  the  proposi- 
tion is  true.  But  a  collection  of  facts  may  constitute 
a  chronology,  but  never  a  philosophic  history.  It  is, 
indeed,  in  all  investigation,  necessary  to  observe  a 
mass  of  details,  in  order  to  generalize.  But,  this  be- 
ing done,  we  must  apply  to  them  the  rules  they  have 
given  us. 

' '  To  this  form  of  composition  historians  are  rapidly 
tending.  In  exercising  their  various  powers  without 
intruding  upon  the  domain  of  fiction,  they  have  tried 
by  every  means  to  widen  the  scope  of  their  favorite 
pursuit.  Their  imaginations  have  been  lately  em- 
ployed less  in  describing  battles  and  sieges,  than  in 
portraying  with  life-like  reality  the  customs  and  con- 
dition of  the  great  body  of  a  people ;  and  they  have 
seized  every  occasion,  in  telling  the  policies  of  kings 
and  cabinets,  to  deliver  profound  theories  and  bold 
prophecies.  But  the  latest  class  of  writers  have  taken 
a  more  correct  and  original  view  of  the  entire  subject. 
They  determine  first  the  complex  influences  of  the 
great  physical  and  moral  agents,  and  then  show  their 
working  in  the  case  under  discussion,  referring  to  them 
the  striking  events  and  ever  changing  circumstances 
through  which  they  conduct  the  reader.  An  example 
of  these  is  found  in  Buckle,  or  rather  would  have  been, 
had  he  lived  to  conclude  his  work. 


LITERARY    LAURELS.  107 

1  'But,  in  the  best  of  such  productions,' it  must  be 
felt  that  the  preliminary  generalizations  are  often  im- 
perfect. The  authors  do  not  reflect  that  this  is  the 
office  of  another  department,  though  an  office  that  is 
far  too  meagrely  performed. 

' '  A  distinction  has  been  drawn  between  special  and 
general  histories.  The  former  detail  the  growth  of  a 
community  in  only  one  respect ;  in  numbers,  for  in- 
stance, in  wealth,  or  in  civilization.  The  latter  may 
also  be  restricted  to  a  particular  society  and  limited 
time,  but  they  narrate  the  progress  of  every  important 
characteristic  at  once,  whether  it  be  convenient  to 
treat  them  all  precisely  at  the  same  time,  or  to  exer- 
cise some  choice,  devoting  one  chapter  to  political 
events,  another  to  religious,  and  a  third  to  manners 
and  customs. 

"  In  the  present  state  of  our  knowledge  on  the  sub- 
ject, special  histories  are  all  that  can  be  expected. 
Not  only  would  any  other  require  in  the  author  a  com- 
prehensiveness of  grasp  such  as  has  been  attained  by 
few  who  have  devoted  themselves  to  this  pursuit,  but 
it  would  introduce  him  into  many  fields  of  thought 
which  have  received  too  small  a  share  of  attention. 
Accordingly,  those  have  proved  the  most  successful 
who,  like  Guizot,  confine  themselves  to  a  particular 
phase  of  a  subject,  which,  even  upon  so  partial  a  view, 
assumes  vast  and  various  dimensions. 

' '  But  even  these  histories  are  retarded  by  obstacles 
of  a  grave  and  enduring  character.  So  intimately  con- 
nected is  the  civilization  of  a  nation  with  its  wealth, 
its  wealth  with  its  government,  its  government  with  a 


108         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

thousand  other  important  circumstances,  that  none 
can  be  considered  exclusively  without  serious  injury 
to  itself  and  the  rest.  This  analytic  method  of  dis- 
cussing what  is  essentially  synthetic,  or  forcibly  di- 
vorcing elements  in  their  nature  inseparable,  is  inci- 
dental only  to  a  stage  of  comparative  ignorance ;  and 
no  one  who  compares  the  present  form  of  composition 
with  those  which  have  preceded,  can  doubt  that  it  also 
will  give  place  to  one  still  more  philosophical. 

"  In  order  to  this,  it  is  necessary  first  to  investigate 
thoroughly  every  department  of  social  science — a  do- 
main whose  extent  is  little  known,  but,  for  that  reason, 
one  which  will  amply  reward  the  greatest  labors  of  the 
philosopher.  After  the  complete  discovery  and  classi- 
fication of  its  principles,  the  field  will  be  open  for  the 
general  historian. 

t(  The  whole  progress  of  our  race  is  a  theme  too  com- 
prehensive for  the  profoundest  of  mankind.  But  leaving 
to  each  a  special  task,  he  may  select  such  a  community 
and  period  as  he  may  deem  to  be  best  for  his  abilities 
and  information.  Exhibiting  its  general  condition  at 
the  outset,  he  will  trace  in  its  history  the  successive 
effects  of  internal  organization  and  outward  influence, 
explaining  their  operation  by  those  general  laws  which 
he  finds  already  obtained.  In  such  a  work  he  will  find 
material  for  the  greatest  depth,  and  free  scope  for  the 
utmost  versatility.  There  will  be  a  continual  demand 
for  information  the  most  unbounded  and  accurate,  an 
understanding  the  broadest  and  most  profound  ;  at  one 
moment  seeking  the  origin  of  wide-spread  institutions 
or  deep-rooted  opinions  ;  at  another  bringing  the  past 


LITERARY    LAURELS.  1  09 

in  life-like  reality  before  the  view,  giving  an  interest 
to  its  scenes  and  characters  otherwise  unattainable ;  he 
will  equally  need  the  penetration  of  the  philosopher 
and  the  imagination  of  the  poet.  If  to  these  qualities 
he  add  a  regard  for  the  paramount  interests  of  truth 
and  morality,  he  will  give  -birth  to  a  composition  not 
less  unique  in  plan  and  execution,  than  unrivalled  in 
originality  and  value." 


CHAPTER   XL 

THE  DEBATING  QUINTETTE. 

"  Behold,  what  fire  is  in  his  eye, what  fervor  on  his  cheek  ! 

That  glorious  burst  of  words!  How  bound  they  from  his 
tongue! 

The  full  expression  of  the  mighty  thought,  the  strong,  tri- 
umphant argument, 

The  keen  demand,  the  clear  reply,  the  fine  poetic  image, 

The  nice  analogy,  the  clinching  fact,  the  metaphor  bold 
and  free. 

The  grasp  of  concentrated  intellect  wielding  the  omnipo- 
tence of  truth, 

The  grandeur  of  his  speech,  in  his  majesty  of  mind!  " 

JHATEYER  else  may  be  said  of  the  class  of 
which  Pry  or  was  a  member,  in  one  respect, 
at  least,  it  was  unique — in  the  utter  dissimi- 
larity of  the  men  who  composed  it.  The  combination 
of  circumstances  which  brought  together  so  many  in- 
congruous characters  was  certainly  a  strange  one,  and 
could  hardly  have  been  possible  outside  of  college  walls. 
Every  variety  of  politics,  policies,  and  opinions  was 
represented,  and  all  seemed  working  for  different  ob- 
jects, in  different  ways,  with  different  motives  :  and 
yet,  although  agreeing,  sympathizing,  and  combining 


112         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

in  little,  the  class  might  be  called  an  eminently  har- 
monious one,  when  we  consider  its  finished  record. 

From  the  very  outset  the  class  was  characterized  by 
an  unusual  fondness  for  debate.  Was  any  question 
proposed  for  discussion,  or  any  plan  presented  for  ac- 
tion ;  it  received  the  most  thorough  sifting,  and  was 
made  the  subject  of  most  careful  deliberation  before 
any  final  disposition  was  made  of  it.  The  keenest  in- 
spection precluded  all  possibility  of  "  smuggling  ";  nor 
was  the  class  often  imposed  upon  by  the  covert  efforts 
of  "rings"  to  legislate  for  their  own  benefit.  The 
bare  suspicion  of  any  such  movement  was  enough  to 
render  its  overthrow  inevitable.  Even  matters  of  the 
most  trifling  importance  were  handled  with  as  much 
care  as  though  the  highest  interests  were  at  stake. 
The  few  items  of  business  which  the  too  stringent 
laws  of  the  college  allowed  the  class  to  transact  for 
itself,  received  an  attention  which  would  have  done 
credit  to  more  important  executive  bodies. 

Hours  were  consumed  in  discussion  before  a  college 
color  was  agreed  upon.  An  election  for  class-officers 
was  the  cause  of  more  manoeuvering  than  the  choice  of 
a  State  governor.  The  selection  of  a  photographer  cre- 
ated an  excitement  seldom  witnessed  in  the  quiet  pre- 
cincts of  a  college,  and  was  the  occasion  of  a  series  of 
meetings  covering  days,  and  caused  a  division  in  the 
class  which  came  to  an  end  only  after  the  most  serious 
negotiations  between  these  parated  parties  :  while  the 
election  of  speakers  as  representatives  in  the  exer- 
cises of  the  annual  Class-Day,  developed  such  a  talent 
for  electioneering  and  "  wire-pulling "  as  surprised 


THE    DEBATING    QUINTETTE.  113 

even  the  class  itself,  when  these  things  were  after- 
wards made  public.  And  yet  the  class  usually  reached 
the  best  decision,  and  before  the  final  settlement  of 
any  question  became  a  unit.  Opponents  that  looked 
fierce  in  the  heat  of  the  strife  would  scarcely  have 
been  recognized  in  the  men  who  became  very  brothers 
the  moment  the  smoke  of  conflict  had  cleared  away. 

The  mind  of  the  class  was  eminently  legal.  In  the 
class-meetings,  and  more  particularly  in  the  societies, 
the  laws  that  governed  these  bodies  were  thoroughly 
tested.  If  any  unfair  advantage  could  be  taken  under 
any  interpretation  of  the  letter  of  the  law,  the  flaw 
was  discovered  and  remedied.  It  would  be  no  exag- 
geration to  say  that  the  code  of  laws  in  both  the  great 
literary  societies  of  the  college  were  brought  to  a  per- 
fection which  they  never  knew  before,  and  both  were 
originally  the  work  of  the  minds  that  framed  the 
matchless  Constitution  of  our  country!  The  class 
availed  itself  of  all  the  advantages  which  the  exercises 
of  the  societies  afforded.  Debates  were  performed  with 
a  zeal  and  relish  that  sometimes  tried  the  patience  of 
those  who  were  less  careful  in  the  performance  of 
these  duties.  By  many,  this  diligence  in  devising 
methods  to  exercise  the  art  of  speech-making  and 
debating  was  looked  upon  with  wonder,  and  the  peri- 
od during  which  the  Class  of  Seventy  became  the  rul- 
ing power,  was  considered  an  era  in  the  history  of  the 
Cliosophic  and  American  Whig  Societies.  The  true 
friends  of  both  were  as  loath  to  see  them  depart  from 
their  walls  as  the  men  of  Seventy  were  to  leave  them.* 

*  History  of  the  Class  of  Seventy,  p.  65. 


114         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

Outside  of  these  societies  the  class  was  quite  as 
active.  Numerous  mock  courts  were  held,  and,  as  the 
historian  remarks,  "  Murders,  thefts,  house  and  heart- 
breaking, and  all  the  crimes  classed  under  the  criminal 
code  were  decided,  and  summary  judgment  meted 
out."  So  great  was  the  interest  manifested  in  these 
trials,  that  measures  had  to  be  taken  to  secure  the 
court  against  the  encroachments  of  the  public.  Ad- 
mission was  denied  to  all  those  not  immediately  inter- 
ested, and  the  members  of  the  profession  were  limited 
to  the  invitation  of  a  single  friend. 

There  was  another  means  of  mental  improvement  to 
which  the  class  paid  special  attention.  This  was  found 
in  those  minor  debating  clubs,  a  large  number  of  which 
sprung  into  existence  during  Junior  year.  Each  of 
these  was  conducted  on  a  different  principle,  and  men 
joined  themselves  to  them  as  their  tastes  or  friend- 
ships directed,  or  the  advantages  of  one  over  another, 
attracted  them.  Few  failed  to  identify  themselves 
with  some  club,  and  all  over  college  might  be  heard 
the  sound  of  excited  voices  engaged  in  the  earnest 
discussion  of  some  important  question  of  the  hour. 
Doubtless  we  shall  again  hear  the  same  voices  ringing 
clear  in  the  Senate  Hall  of  the  nation!  At  all  events, 
these  men  availed  themselves  of  the  best  training  for 
such  a  career. 

In  all  these  class-meetings,  meetings  of  societies, 
sittings  of  mock  courts,  and  gatherings  for  debate, 
Pry  or  was  most  deeply  interested,  and  will  always  be 
remembered  as  a  prominent  figure.  But  we  wish  to 
advert  more  particularly  to  his  career  as  a  member  of 


THE    DEBATING    QUINTETTE.  115 

v  one  of  these  select  debating  circles.  The  club  in  ques- 
tion was  organized  early  in  Junior  year,  under  the 
name  and  style  of  the  D.  8.  P.,  the  Greek  charac- 
ters being  the  initial  letters  of  the  following  words  : 
dialektike,  mmbole,  pempys,  meaning,  as  they  construed 
the  terms,  "  Debating  Club  of  Five,'"  or  "  The  Debat- 
ing Quintette."  The  five  men  who  composed  this  club 
were  Hugh  Graham  Kyle,  John  T.  Shelby,  David  R. 
Sessions,  Henry  R.  Whitehill,  and  Theodorick  B. 
Pry  or.  Its  object  was  improvement  and  discipline  in 
debate,  and  the  cultivation  of  friendly  and  social  rela- 
tions. One  night  in  the  week  was  appointed  for  dis- 
cussion, the  meeting  usually  being  held  in  Pryor's 
room  out  in  town. 

The  leading  spirit  in  the  debates  of  this  club  was 
Pryor,  and  the  impressions  which  he  made  upon  his 
associates  are  well  remembered  still.  His  mind  was 
keen,  quick,  and  ready  for  any  emergency.  It  was 
the  custom  of  the  debaters,  upon  assembling  for  the 
evening,  to  determine,  by  lot,  the  affirmative  and 
negative  sides  of  the  question;  next  to  call  upon  him 
whose  lot  it  was  to  lead  off  in  the  debate,  and  then  to 
announce  the  subject  for  discussion.  This  method  was 
pursued  in  order  that  no  one  might  have  time  to  pre- 
pare himself  by  previous  study  or  research,  and  for  the 
purpose  of  cultivating  extemporaneous  thought  and 
speech.  If  by  chance  Pryor  was  called  upon  to  lead  the 
way  in  the  debate,  it  was  surprising  to  see  with  what 
readiness  he  attacked  the  subject.  Rising  to  his  feet, 
without  a  moment's  preparation,  he  seemed  intuitively 
to  grasp  the  point  at  issue.  This  hold  he  never  relaxed 


116         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

through  all  the  turnings  and  contortions  of  the  debate. 
All  his  arguments  and  illustrations  he  made  subservi- 
ent to  the  one  purpose  of  demonstrating  the  leading 
thought  which  was  to  decide  the  question.  With  the 
advantage  which  such  a  course  of  action  secured  to 
him,  Pry  or  was  very  frequently  the  victor.  In  addi- 
tion to  his  keen  and  quick  perceptions,  he  was  gifted 
with  great  fluency  and  accuracy  of  language;  and  this 
also  contributed  to  make  him  what  he  was — a  very 
ready  debater.  Those  who  know  the  difficulty  of 
effective  speaking  without  previous  preparation,  will 
at  once  perceive  that  Pryor's  mind  was  exceedingly 
penetrating  and  under  absolute  control. 

Again,  his  mind  was  stored  with  a  rich  fund  of 
information.  Whatever  subject  might  be  proposed,  he 
could  tell  something,  often  a  great  deal,  about  it.  He 
would  suggest  new  thoughts,  quote  the  opinions  of 
many  writers,  and  bring  to  his  aid  facts  and  statistics 
innumerable;  while  others  were  compelled  to  hesitate 
for  want  of  accurate  knowledge. 

But  it  was  his  grand  analytical  and  logical  power  of 
intellect  which  preeminently  calls  forth  admiration. 
He  separated  the  subject  into  its  component  ideas  with 
the  ease  and  skill  of  the  apt  anatomist.  These  he 
would  arrange  in  their  proper  order  and  relation,  and 
then  draw'  his  conclusions.  This  faculty  was  most 
apparent  when  he  acted  as  judge  of  the  debate,  and 
summed  up  the  arguments,  pro  and  con,  previous  to  a 
decision.  He  would  then  discuss  the  merits  of  the 
debate,  lay  out  the  question  clearly  before  you,  indi- 
cate •  the  point  at  issue,  show  what  arguments  were 


THE   DEBATING    QUINTETTE.  H7 

faulty  and  wherein,  and  what  were  sound  and  effective, 
draw  his  conclusions,  and  rarely  fail  to  give  satisfaction 
by  his  decision! 

Such  were  Pryor's  most  conspicuous  powers  of  mind, 
as  displayed  and  impressed  upon  his  fellow-students  in 
their  debates.  His  exterior  demeanor  was  marked  by  a 
pleasing  courtesy  and  deference.  He  never  presumed 
upon  his  own  powers  in  debate  to  treat  lightly  or 
contemptuously  the  feeble  arguments  of  his  adver- 
sary. His  conduct  disarmed  you  of  the  fear  of  rough 
treatment,  and  made  the  way  of  debate  "a  way  of 
pleasantness  and  a  path  of  peace. "  There  was  an  air 
of  candor  and  truth  in  whatever  he  said,  and  the 
modesty  with  which  he  urged  his  opinions  was  only 
surpassed  by  the  readiness  and  good  nature  with  which 
he  retracted  them  when  convinced  of  his  error.  His 
name  will  never  be  forgotten  by  the  members  of  that 
society,  in  which  he  became  the  brightest  ornament 
by  his  talent,  and  the  most  beloved  by  his  gentle  and 
peaceful  demeanor. 

The  meetings  of  "  The  Debating  Quintette "  were 
continued  through  Junior  and  the  greater  part  of 
Senior  year.  At  graduation,  its  members  had  won  a 
deservedly  high  reputation  as  debaters,  and  were  also 
found  among  the  best  in  scholarship.  The  faithful 
discharge  of  these  weekly  self-imposed  duties  did  not 
prevent  them  from  securing  the  honors  of  Commence- 
ment," while  stepping  aside  from  the  beaten  path  to 
acquire  that  power  of  eloquent  and  effective  speech 
which  is  the  envy  of  all  and  the  possession  of  compar- 
tively  few. 
9 


CHAPTER  XII. 

REVIVAL. 


"  I  yield  my  will  to  thine,  and  pledge  my  soul 
Supremely  to  thy  service.     I  renounce 
All  worldly  aims,  all  selfish  enterprise, 
And  dedicate  the  remnant  of  my  power 
To  thee  and  those  thou  lovest." 


is  a  characteristic  of  Princeton  College,  as  a 
Christian  institution,  that  it  has  exalted  religion 
to  its  true  place  in  the  academic  course.  The 
sentiments  of  its  Trustees,  in  reference  to  this  matter, 
were  aptly  expressed  by  Dr.  Hodge  in  his  address  of 
welcome,  on  the  occasion  of  Dr.  McCosh's  inauguration 
as  President  of  the  College.  "  We  would  state,"  said 
he,  "  in  a  single  word  what  it  is  that  we  desire.  It  is 
that  true  religion  here  may  be  dominant;  that  a  pure 
gospel  may  be  preached,  and  taught,  and  lived;  that 
the  students  should  be  made  to  feel  that  the  eternal  is 
infinitely  more  important  than  the  temporal,  the  heav- 
enly than  the  earthly." 

It  was  Pryor's  high  privilege  to  pursue  such  a  course 
of  education  at  Princeton,  and  to  be  brought  under 


1*20  I'KVOR:    A    IJIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

the  influence  of  a  great  religious  revival.  The  history 
of  this  work  of  grace  was  so  faithfully  narrated  by  Dr. 
McCosh  in  his  last  sermon  before  the  class  of  1870, 
that  we  cannot  do  better  than  transcribe  it  here  : 

"  During  Senior  year  we  had  our  attention  drawn, 
among  other  things,  such  as  the  evidences  of  religion, 
to  the  conversions  detailed  in  the  New  Testament,  as 
those  of  the  three  thousand  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  of 
the  Ethiopian  Eunuch,  of  Saul,  Cornelius,  Lydia,  and 
the  Philippian  jailor.  The  students  had  their  atten- 
tion thus  directed  from  Sabbath  to  Sabbath,  and  in 
preparing  for  the  recitation  during  the  week,  to  the 
nature  and  necessity  of  regeneration.  From  the  very 
beginning  <>f  the  year  a  number  of  students,  new  and 
old,  wore  supplicating  in  their  then  rather  slimly 
attended  prayer-meetings  for  an  out-pouring  <>f  the 
Spirit. 

"  There  was  an  idea  abroad  that  for  ages  past  n<> 
class  had  passed  through  Princeton  College  without 
being  in  the  midst  ..f  a  revival:  that  no  student  had 
ever  pursued  a  four  years  course  in  our  college  with- 
out finding  himself  in  the  heart  of  a  scene  in  which 
friends  were  confessing  sins  and  professing  Christ.  S 
these  students  prayed  on  in  the  midst  of  discourage- 
ments— as  if  they  would  take  no  refusal,  and  hoped 
against  hope.  The  day  of  prayer  for  colleges  came 
and  passed  away,  and  the  heaven  was  over  our  head  as 
brass,  and  the  earth  under  us  as  iron.  Meanwhile  a 
noble  and  generous  resolution  of  one  of  the  d 
that  they  would  abstain  from  a  practice  which  would 
'  themselves  and  companions  into  temptation,  was 


REVIVAL.  121 

registered  in  the  annals  of  the  college — I  believe  also 
in  the  records  of  heaven.  A  blessing  came  not  long 
after  on  the  college,  and  descended  specially  on  that 
class.  *  It  visited  first  those  who  had  been  professing 
followers  of  Christ,  but  who  were  not  living  worthy  of 
their  profession.  Then  it  spread  to  others,  who  had 
previously  manifested  no  interest  in  religion.  It 
appeared  at  a  time  when  the  students  were  busily 
preparing  for  a  sessional  examination,  and  yet  the 
examination  did  not  hinder  the  work  of  God,  nor  did 
the  work  of  God  hinder  the  preparation  for  the  exam- 
ination. It  outlived  the  vacation  that  succeeded,  and 
continued  through  the  term  following.  It  was  accom- 
panied with  no  worldly  demonstrations,  with  no  carnal 
excitement  of  any  kind.  It  was  produced  simply  by 
the  Word  read,  or  uttered  by  the  lips  of  those  who 
felt  its  power.  For  three  months  meetings  for  prayer 
were  held  every  night  among  the  students,  and  no 
ordinary  college  room  could  hold  those  who  attended, 
and  we  had  to  throw  open  the  college  chapel ;  and 
there  were  other  meetings  held  every  evening  in  the 
rooms  of  the  students. 

t{  Our  strongest  young  men  bowed  down  under  that 
mastering  power  which  they  felt  it  in  vain  to  resist. 
Some  of  our  youths  of  brightest  promise,  who  took  the 
honors  in  their  classes,  publicly  professed  themselves 
followers  of  the  Crucified  One,  and  declared  '  God 
forbid  that  I  should  glory  save  in  the  cross  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ. '  There  could  not  have  been  fewer  than 
one  hundred  who  avowed  that  they  received  a  quick- 

*  Class  of  1871. 


122         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

ening  or  converting  power,  and  I  believe  there  were 
more.  Not  a  few  of  those  originally  intended  for  other 
professions,  devoted  themselves  to  the  service  of  God 
in  the  work  of  the  minister  or  missionary;  while  a 
number  resolved  to  lead  a  consistent  Christian  life, 
and  promote  religion  in  other  professions  and  walks  of 
life." 

During  the  earlier  part  of  this  season  of  revival, 
Pryor  was  a  passive  but  interested  spectator  of  the 
events  occurring  around  him.  He  was,  of  course,  a 
regular  attendant  at  all  the  public  religious  services  of 
the  Sabbath,  and  was  also  occasionally  present  at  the 
evening  prayer  meetings,  held  at  first  in  Philadelphia!! 
Hall,  but  afterwards  in  the  more  commodious  chapel. 
He  seems  not  to  have  been  fully  awakened,  however, 
until  late  in  the  spring. 

It  was  on  Saturday  evening,  May  21st,  1870,  at  the 
regular  weekly  meeting  of  the  Philadelphian  Society, 
that  Pryor  first  asked  an  interest  in  the  prayers  of 
God's  people.  Another  student  arose  for  prayer  in 
the  same  meeting.  Immediately  after,  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Harris,  who  was  present,  arose  and  said  that  "  prayer 
had  been  requested  for  one  of  these  young  men  in  a 
city  prayer-meeting,  unknown  to  him."  There  is 
scarcely  a  doubt  that  it  was  Pryor  to  whom  he  refer- 
red. 

The  next  day  Dr.  Brookes,  of  St.  Louis,  preached 
in  the  college  chapel.  His  sermon  is  remembered  as 
among  the  most  eloquent  and  effective  ever  delivered 
before  the  students.  Such  a  presentation  of  truth, 
such  adaptation  of  thought  to  the  peculiar  mental  atti- 


REVIVAL.  123 

tude  of  his  audience,  and  such  eloquent  reasoning  and 
pleading,  were  irresistible.  Men  who  had  remained 
unmoved  until  now  were  compelled  to  acknowledge 
themselves  affected,  and  many  whose  awakening  dated 
from  that  hour  afterwards  made  public  profession  of 
their  faith  in  Christ.  Dr.  Brookes  remained  in  Prince- 
ton for  several  days,  conversing  with  the  students  on 
religious  subjects,  and  otherwise  laboring  with  great 
success.  He  has  kindly  furnished  us  with  an  account 
of  an  interview  with  Pryor  at  the  close  of  the  prayer- 
meeting  on  Monday  evening,  May  23rd.  "  I  was 
much  impressed,"  he  writes,  uby  the  earnestness  of 
his  manner  and  the  readiness  of  his  mind  during  our 
conversation.  He  had  learned  by  sad  experience  the 
truth  of  our  Lord's  declaration,  l  That  which  is  born  of 
the  flesh,  is  flesh,'  but  he  had  not  entered  into  the  joy 
to  be  derived  from  the  abiding  presence  of  the  Com- 
forter. He  knew  that  the  flesh  was  in  him,  but  he 
had  not  fully  understood  that  he  was  not  in  the  flesh 
but  in  the  spirit.  Hence  he  was  greatly  troubled 
about  the  state  of  his  feelings,  until  told  that  the  testi- 
mony of  the  Gospel  is  not  he  that  feeleth,  but  '  he  that 
believeth  HATH  everlasting  life,  and  shall  not  come  into 
condemnation,  (or  judgment)  but  is  passed  from  death 
unto  life,'  and  'there  is  therefore  now  NO  condemna- 
tion to  them  which  are  in  Christ  Jesus;'  for  '  by  Him 
all  that  believe  ARE  justified  from  ALL  things,'  and, 
hence,  we  '  are  complete  in  Him, '  because  '  as  He  is, 
so  ARE  we  in  this  world. ' 

' '  I  remember  how  his  countenance  lighted  up  with 
a  gleam  of  happy  intelligence  as  he  listened  to  these 


124  PRYOR :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

simple  truths,  and  eagerly  asked :  i  Is  this  all  I  Am  I 
saved  now  and  for  nothing?'  '  Exactly  so,'  was  the 
reply,  '  saved  now  according  to  God's  eternal  purpose, 
and  saved  for  nothing;  without  waiting  for  repentings 
or  feelings,  or  resolutions,  or  anything  else,  through 
the  precious  blood  of  Christ  alone,  which  cleanseth 
from  all  sin."  He  gave  me  liis  hand  and  went  quickly 
out  into  the  dark,  and  I  saw  him  no  more;  but  I  expect 
to  see  him  at  our  gathering  together  into  the  Lord,  in 
the  shining  garments  of  his  immortality!  " 

It  was  on  the  evening  previous  to  that  on  which  this 
interview  occurred,  Sunday  evening,  May  22nd,  at  a 
class-prayer-meeting,  held  in  Mr.  Spencer's  room, 
number  five,  north  college,  that  Pry  or  made  a  public 
profession  of  his  faith  in  Christ.  Up  to  this  time  he 
had  said  nothing  to  his  family  about  religious  experi- 
ence. The  first  intimation  they  had  of  his  deep  inter- 
est in  religion  was  derived  from  a  letter  which  was 
written  on  that  same  Sunday  night.  Without  a  word 
in  reference  to  the  long  struggle  he  had  gone  through, 
he  states,  in  the  simple  manner  that  ever  characterized 
him,  the  result  of  the  conflict.  We  insert  the  letter 
entire : 

"PRINCETON  COLLEGE,  May  22nd,  1870. 

"  MY  DEAR  MOTHER  :  God  has  been  pleased,  in 
answer  to  prayer,  as  I  belie ve;  to  pardon  my  sins,  and 
has  given  me  strength  to  state  the  fact  to  my  class- 
mates. I  had  yesterday  a  talk  with  Dr.  Dumeld,  who 
prayed  with  me  and  gave  me  great  hope,  and  to-day  I 
feel  that  I  trust  wholly  in  my  Saviour  for  salvation. 

"Dear  mother,  you  know  not  how  thankful  I  am 


REVIVAL.  125 

for  the  efforts  of  you  and  sister  in  praying  for  me,  as  I 
know  you  have  done.  Please  pray  now  that  I  may 
receive  grace  from  on  high  to  lead  a  consistent  Chris- 
tian life  and  give  all  the  glory  to  God. 

"  I  am  often  troubled  by  pride  and  doubts,  but  Dr. 
Duffield  says  they  are  felt  by  all  Christians.  Pray  to 
God  to  remove  them  and  give  me  greater  love  to  His 
Son.  Give  my  dearest  love  to  all. 

"  Your  affectionate  son, 

"T.  B.  PRYOR. 

"  P.  S. — I  wish,  too,  that  you  and  sister  would  ask 
God  to  bless  my  class-mates,  for  there  are  many  whom 
I  wish  to  bring  to  Christ.  The  Christians  of  my  class 
have  been  very  kind  to  me,  and  Wallie  Miller  and 
several  other  friends  have  been  praying  specially  in 
my  behalf." 

Pryor  never  did  anything  by  halves.  Soon  as  he 
became  convinced  of  his  duty  to  examine  the  claims  of  re- 
ligion, he  did  so  in  the  most  thorough  and  conscientious 
manner.  When  he  began  to  feel  the  need  of  an  interest 
in  the  prayers  of  others,  he  hesitated  not  to  ask  for 
it.  And  once  having  made  profession  of  religion,  he 
accepted  its  responsibilities  and  entered  at  once  upon 
the  discharge  of  its  duties.  The  question  of  his  own 
salvation  settled,  he  asked,  like  Paul — "  Lord,  what 
wilt  thou  have  me  to  do  I"  and  devoted  himself  to  the 
revealed  will  of  God  concerning  him.  A  class-mate, 
writing  in  reference  to  that  period  of  his  life  succeed- 
ing his  conversion,  says  :  "  All  of  us  who  were  about 
him  perceived  that  he  was  a  Christian  who  followed 


126  PRYOR  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

Christ.  All  things  that  were  true,  honest,  just,  pure, 
lovely,  and  of  good  report,  shone  in  his  walk  and  con- 
versation among  vis.  Not  more  pleasing  was  his  manly 
beauty  to  the  eye,  than  was  his  piety  to  the  hearts  of 
those  who  communed  with  him.  His  modesty,  purity, 
and  simplicity  of  character,  seemed  not  to  belong  to 
one  of  his  years,  but  rather  to  the  innocence  of  child-  • 
hood.  Entirely  unconscious  of  the  powers  he  possessed, 
he  would  hardly  seek  responsibility  ;  yet,  he -was  not 
the  man  to  turn  from  the  path  of  duty  or  avoid  it. 
The  only  question  in  his  mind  would  be,  '  What  is 
duty  I '  But,  with  a  great  responsibility  thrown  upon 
him,  he  would  have  been  an  inspired  man,  and  equal 
to  any  emergency." 

Another  class-mate,  Mr.  John  L.  Caldwell,  who  was 
quite  intimate  with  Pry  or,  and  who  became  interested 
in  religion  at  about  the  same  time  with  him,  furnishes 
many  interesting  details  of  his  religious  experience. 
He  writes  as  follows  :  "  Would  that  I  could  make  my 
own  convictions  the  common  property  of  all  as  regards 
the  reality  of  Pryor's  conversion.  The  first  real  evi- 
dence I  had  of  his  being  under  serious  convictions  was 
obtained  during  a  walk  we  took  one  afternoon  just 
after  prayer-meeting.  In  speaking  of  himself,  he  said 
that  he  had  been  in  spiritual  trouble  for  some  time, 
even  before  the  beginning  of  the  revival.  He  had 
been  studying  the  Evidences  of  Christianity  for  several 
months,  and  with  those  studies  religious  convictions 
had  daily  grown  upon  him. 

"  I  remember  asking  him  at  that  time  if  he  was  fully 
satisfied  with  the  *  Evidences. '  He  said  there  were 


REVIVAL.  127 

some  things  he  could  not  understand,  but  he  under- 
stood enough  to  satisfy  himself  that  Christianity  was 
true  and  that  he  was  a  sinner.  He  said  he  had  just 
been  reading  Hume,  and  was  surprised  that  a  man  of 
his  reputed  ability  could  be  guilty  of  such  weak  argu- 
mentation. 

"  I  saw  comparatively  little  of  him  from  this  time 
until  the  day  when  he  made  a  public  profession  of  re- 
ligion. On  the  morning  of  that  day  I  went  to  his 
room,  and  he  told  me  he  intended  to  make  a  profession 
of  religion  at  the  next  meeting.  Said  he  :  '  I  have 
been  thinking  of  taking  the  step  for  a  day  or  two, 
but  1  have  been  afraid  that  the  work  is  not  yet  com- 
plete, and  I  might  fall  away  and  bring  reproach  on 
Christ.  But  I  have  just  read  a  passage  in  the  ninety- 
first  Psalm — '  For  He  shall  give  his  angels  charge  over 
thee,  to  keep  thee  in  all  thy  ways.  They  shall  bear 
thee  up  in  their  hands,  lest  thou  dash  thy  foot  against 
a  stone. '  I  hope  now  I  have  given  myself  wholly  to 
God,  and  I  will  rely  on  His  promises  for  the  future, 
and  I  believe  He  will  not  let  me  dishonor  Him. '  And 
that  evening  he  did  formally  and  publicly  give  himself 
to  God.  I  never  afterward  heard  a  doubt  come  from 
his  lips.  Surely  the  Spirit  itself  bore  witness  with  his 
spirit  that  he  was  a  son  of  God — then  is  he  now  a 
joint  heir  with  Christ. 

"  But  that  which  most  of  all  assures  me  of  the 
reality  of  his  hopes,  is  the  recollection  of  his  child- 
likeness  and  simplicity.  He  had  that  indescribable 
something  which  marks  the  child  of  God,  in  an  eminent 
degree.  Truly,  as  a  little  child  he  endeavored  to  enter 


128         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

into  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven.  When  conversing  with 
him,  I  seemed  not  to  talk  with  P-ryor,  but  with  an  im- 
mortal soul.  It  was  really  refreshing  to  see  that  huge 
intellect  prostrate  itself  before  its  Maker  in  such 
humility.  If,  with  God,  to  be  conquered  is  to  be  a 
conqueror,  surely  he  was  a  conqueror,  and  is  waiting 
now  for  us  to  join  him  in  singing  the  '  song  of  Moses 
and  the  Lamb. '  I  cannot  see  how  any  one  can  think 
for  a  moment  that  a  knock  like  his  was  not  heard.  He, 
himself,  used  to  dwell  on  that  verse  in  John,  '  He 
that  believeth  on  me  hath  everlasting  life,'  with  pecu- 
liar pleasure.  I  remember  that  in  one  of  our  walks 
together  he  quoted  that  passage,  with  one  or  two 
others,  and  spoke  of  the  consolation  of  having  such 
assurances  given  us  by  God. 

"  But  his  faith  was  not  without  works.  I  was  in 
trouble  myself  at  that  time,  and  I  shall  ever  remember, 
with  gratitude,  his  labors  of  love.  I  know  four  of  the 
class  who  were  among  the  most  callous  in  it,  with 
whom  he  labored  unceasingly,  to  induce  them  to  seek 
their  souls'  salvation.  Two  of  these  are  now  professing 
Christians,  and  testify  that  Pryor  was  the  instrument  in 
God's  hands  of  their  conversion.  In  addition  to  those 
with  whom  he  talked  on  the  subject  of  religion,  he 
prayed  privately  for  one,  by  name,  and  he  was  con- 
verted. He  also  sent  to  New  York  for  some  tracts, 
and  he  took  an  active  part  in  securing  their  private 
judicious  distribution. 

"  These  are  labors  of  his  which  fell  under  my  ob- 
servation :  he  may  have  done  other  things  of  which  I 
know  nothing.  In  view  of  all  these  things,  how  can 


REVIVAL.  129 

we  but  believe  that  Pryor  was  a  true  child  of  God  ? 
Never  in  my  experience  have  I  seen  any  one  show  as 
clearly  as  he  did  the  inworkings  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
Such  works  could  hardly  have  been  hypocritical,  and 
such  hope  surely  was  not  built  on  a  sandy  foundation. 
The  fruits  of  the  Spirit  were  so  manifest  in  him,  that 
no  one  could  doubt  that  the  real  '  root  of  the  matter 
was  in  him.'  But  he  was  so  comparatively  seclusive 
that  but  few  could  really  know  much  of  his  inner  life. 
But  I  am  sure  that  no  one  of  his  intimate  friends  can 
doubt  the  reality  of  his  life,  after  having  witnessed  the 
humble  and  child-like  manner  in  which  he  sought 
peace,  and  the  gentleness  and  zeal  which  characterized 
every  action  after  he  had  found  it.  He  must  have 
been  a  Christian." 

But  this  portion  of  our  record  would  not  be  com- 
plete without  one  other  intensely  interesting  letter, 
showing  the  power  of  Pryor's  Christian  example  and 
efforts  upon  those  with  whom  he  was  brought  into 
contact.  It  is  the  story  of  the  new  birth  of  a  soul 
which  shall  "  shine  as  a  star  in  the  crown  of  his  re- 
joicing." The  writer  says  :  "On  entering  college,  I 
was  wholly  without  hope  and  without  God  in  the 
world.  I  was  beyond  the  reach  of  any  power  except 
the  power  of  Jesus.  I  do  not  know  whether  I  believed 
the  Bible  or  not.  I  did  not  hesitate  to  ridicule  such 
parts  of  it  as  my  inclinations,  urged  on  by  such  a  state, 
prompted.  I  could  sit  in  a  prayer-meeting  in  the  re- 
vival of  '70,  when  nearly  all  my  class-mates  were  giving 
testimony  of  the  power  of  God  to  send  hope  and  peace 
to  despairing  souls,  wholly  unmoved.  Pryor  was  my 


130         PKYOK:  A  BIOGKAPHICAL  STUDY. 

companion  through  college,  perhaps  more  than  any 
other  member  of  the  class.  I  saw  in  him  a  character 
and  a  life  I  had  never  seen  before.  By  his  life  sub- 
sequent to  his  conversion,  I  was  forced  to  admit  that 
his  profession  was  per  se  no  libel  on  the  Master  in 
whose  service  he  was. 

"  I  do  not  recollect  the  exact  time  when  he  first 
spoke  to  me  on  the  subject  of  my  soul's  salvation,  but 
it  was  somewhere  near  the  close  of  our  college  course. 
His  upright  and  godly  life  had  forced  from  me  the 
most  profound  respect  for  him  and  the  Saviour  to 
whom  he  prayed.  He  said  very  little  ;  but  he  said 
enough  to  lead  me  to  think  over  my  past  life,  and  to 
cast  a  glance  at  the  future.  I  shall  never  forget  the 
impression  that  first  conversation  had  upon  my  mind. 
It  was  not  so  much  what  he  said,  as  the  way  he  said  it. 
He  believed  he  was  setting  forth  God's  truth,  and 
spoke  as  if  he  knew  it  was  so.  I  felt  that  he  had  evi- 
dences that  were  withheld  from  me.  He  spoke  with 
me  only  a  few  times  on  this  wise,  but  every  time  with 
telling  effect.  I  could  not  help  thinking  of  it ;  and 
after  we  parted,  and  I  had  lost  his  companionship,  I 
made  his  thoughts  the  companions  of  my  lonely  hours. 
I  began  to  love  him  more  than  ever,  and  with  love  for 
him  grew  the  love  of  the  Lord  whom  he  loved  and 
served.  I  cannot  but  feel  that  he  ivas  the  instrument 
chosen  of  God  to  unveil  the  darkness  that  shut  out  tJie 
light  from  my  soul.  I  fear  that,  had  I  never  known 
him,  I  had  never  known  the  love  of  God,  nor  welcomed 
the  glad  enjoyments  of  a  Christian  experience." 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

TRIUMPH. 

'  Such  men  as  he  be  never  at  heart's  ease 
Whiles  they  behold  a  greater  than  themselves." 

— Shakespeare's  "Julius  Cwsar." 

f^fliP  *^ie  student  just  entering  college,  the  four 
years  of  prospective  banishment  from  home 
and  its  joys  seem  long  and  dreary.  And  if  he 
should  tarry  long  on  the  threshold  and  reflect,  he  might 
never  go  farther.  But  once  a  collegian  and  the  center 
of  a  new  circle,  surrounded  by  new  companions  of  like 
tastes  and  sympathies,  he  lives  his  new  live  with  a  zest 
and  pleasure  that  he  had  never  deemed  possible. 
Within  college  walls  the  days  pass  unclouded  save  by 
the  most  transient  shadows.  In  its  seclusion  and  iso- 
lation outside  excitements  and  noises  are  but  faintly 
echoed,  and  the  signal  that  calls  the  world  to  the 
weary  struggle  and  strife  of  daily  life  has  no  place  here, 
where  the  morning  bell  ushers  in  a  day  of  fresh  delights 
and  pleasures  that  are  ever  new. 

The  employments  of  college  are  intensely  enjoyable 
to  the  man  who  has  any  of  the  student's  habits  and 


132         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

tastes.  There  is  food  here  for  every  variety  of  intel- 
lect. The  mind  that  is  endowed  with  the  love  for 
ancient  lore  strolls  amid  the  groves,  the  gardens,  and 
the  graves  of  classical  antiquity ;  the  youthful  astron- 
omer may  gather  wisdom  from  the  clustered  stars, 
and  trace  their  circuit  through  the  sky  ;  the  story  of 
buried  empires  and  the  biography  of  nations  that  have 
passed  away  may  here  be  read  in  a  better  light  and 
with  a  keener  interest ;  and  every  phase  of  genius 
finds  something  congenial  to  foster  and  develop  it. 
The  improvement  of  time  and  advantages  implies  labor 
and  care  ;  the  way  is  steep  up  the  hill  of  knowledge, 
but  the  ascent  is  everywhere  hedged  with  pleasure, 
and  difficulties  only  give  that  shade  to  the  picture 
which  is  necessary  to  make  it  more  thoroughly  enjoy- 
able. If  there  are  troubles — and  who  has  not  troubles 
— they  are  concealed  by  the  stronger  light  which  joy 
sheds  about  them. 

Who  ever  knew  a  graduate  to  speak  of  his  college 
life  with  anything  but  a  smiling  face  1  His  whole 
countenance  lights  up  with  pleasure  as  he  tells  of  its 
work  and  play — and  even  when  he  did  little  else  but 
play,  he  regrets  not  that  he  gave  himself  up  entirely  to 
the  pleasures  of  that  life,  but  rather  that  its  delights 
were  so  short-lived,  and  that  the  stern  realities  of  life 
so  soon  succeeded  ! 

But  the  years  of  college  existence — 

"Swift  years  !  that  to  the  glad  heart  sweep  along 
As  o'er  the  prairie  bounds  the  aiitlered  stag  ! 
Long  years  !  that  to  the  sad  heart  pass  away 
As  o'er  Venetian  waters  glides  at  night 
The  slow  and  silent  gondola  "- 


TRIUMPH.  ]  33 

whether  passing  swiftly  or  slowly  have  at  last  an 
end;  and  the  young  faces  which  but  a  little  while  ago 
exchanged  glances  for  the  first  time  soon  become 
parts  of  a  gladly-remembered  picture  of  the  past. 
The  class  so  long  bound  together  by  the  ties  of 
friendship  and  affection  goes  back  into  the  world  as  it 
came  together,  and  enters  individually  into  new  rela- 
tions. Others  press  forward  into  the  vacant  places, 
assuming  like  responsibilities,  and  entering  upon 
similar  labors  and  enjoyments. 

There  is,  however,  a-  brief  space  before  a  class  severs 
its  student  connection  with  Alma  Mater  and  goes  out 
into  the  world,  when  it  pauses  to  receive  a  loving  bene- 
diction, and  to  participate  in  the  joyful  festivities  of 
the  annual  celebration.  This  time  had  now  been 
reached  by  the  one  hundred  and  twenty-third  graduat- 
ing class  at  Princeton.  The  class  of  '70  was  waiting 
to  celebrate  its  freedom  and  speak  its  farewells. 

To  no  one  was  this  separation  the  cause  of  deeper 
sorrow  than  to  Pryor.  His  after-life  proved  that  he 
had  loved  his  class-mates  and  all  the  associations  of 
Princeton  with  an  affection  that  would  not  be  con- 
cealed. Student  life,  and  the  scenes  with  which  it 
identified  him,  had  become  necessary  to  his  happiness. 
The  friendships  he  had  formed  and  the  affection  he 
had  conceived  for  those  most  closely  endeared  to  him, 
though  in  many  cases  unspoken  and  even  concealed 
from  those  who  were  its  objects,  made  the  years  spent 
at  college  the  very  happiest  of  his  short  life. 
Besides,  he  felt  the  need  of  the  friends  by  whom  he 
had  been  surrounded,  to  help  him  in  the  Christian 
10 


134  PRYOR  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

life.  He  often  acknowledged  a  strong  influence  for 
good  coming  from  the  companions  who  had  made 
profession  of  religion  with  him,  and  expressed  the 
wish  to  remain  longer  with  them.  But  this  could  not 
be.  The  time  was  come  when  the  strongest  ties  must 
be  broken  and  the  best  friends  say  Farewell. 

The  regular  exercises  began  as  usual  with  the  Bac- 
calaureate Sermon  by  President  McCosh,  on  Sunday, 
June  26th.  The  theme  of  the  discourse  was  "  Les- 
sons derived  from  the  Plant,"  and  the  text,  u  Where- 
fore, if  God  so  clothe  the  grass  of  the  field,  which  to- 
day is  and  to-morrow  is  cast  into  the  oven,  shall  he 
not  much  more  clothe  you,  O  ye  of  little  faith  ?"  After 
a  beautiful  unfolding  of  his  subject,  the  speaker  con- 
cluded with  a  practical  application,  addressing  himself 
directly  to  the  graduating  class,  in  part,  as  follows: 

"  The  gardener  seizes  the  lily,  beautiful  even  in  the 
marsh,  and  he  transplants  it  into  his  garden,  and  it 
grows  with  more  luxuriance  and  sends  forth  a  richer 
fragrance.  So  we  would,  in  a  college  like  this,  lay  hold 
of  the  more  gifted  minds  of  the  country,  and  raise 
them  to  as  high  a  state  of  refinement  as  possible,  by 
means  of  the  highest  literature  of  the  ancient  and 
modern  worlds,  and  the  highest  science  of  modern 
times.  We  do  not  pretend  here  to  make  you  mer- 
chants, or  lawyers,  or  farmers,  or  theologians,  or  phy- 
sicians, but  we  give  such  a  training  that,  whatever  be 
the  profession  to  which  you  turn,  you  will  find  your- 
selves with  formed  and  conformed  powers  of  applica- 
tion, which  will  continue  with  you  through  life,  and  in 
possession  of  varied  knowledge  which  may  aid  you 


TRIUMPH.  135 

your  pursuits,  and  furnish  enjoyments  of  a  high  kind 
in  the  midst  of  your  professional  solicitudes.  That 
has  been  the  aim  of  all  discipline  here :  of  the  old 
studies  which  have  stood  the  test  of  time,  and  of  the 
new  studies  which  have  given  proof  that  they  are 
worthy  of  being  placed  alongside  of  them.  And  I  may 
take  the  opportunity  of  saying,  that  we  have  no  inten- 
tion whatever  in  this  college  of  discarding  the  old 
branches,  which  braced  the  minds  of  our  forefathers 
and  made  them  men  of  courage  and  power.  We  have 
no  idea  of  giving  the  imprimatur  of  our  Degree  to 
persons,  supposed  to  be  educated  gentlemen,  who, 
not  being  able  to  translate  an  ordinary  Latin  or 
Greek  author,  are  cut  off  from  the  literature  and  the 
very  history  of  the  past.  We  mean,  too,  that  the 
minds  of  our  young  men  should  be  strengthened  by 
the  study  of  a  competent  amount  of  mathematics, 
which,  besides  being  the  grand  instrument  of  investi- 
gation in  certain  of  the  physical  sciences,  is  more  fitted 
than  any  other  study  to  cure  that  wandering  and 
dissipation  which  is  the  ruin  intellectually  of  so  many 
bright  youths.  Philosophy,  too,  especially  the  philos- 
ophy of  the  mind  of  man,  has  ever  had  a  high  place, 
and  will  continue  to  have  a  high  place,  in  this  institu- 
tion, were  it  only  to  counteract  the  materialistic  spirit 
of  the  times  ;  and  because  it  opens  to  us  a  far  nobler 
part  of  God's  workmanship  than  the  lilies  of  the  field 
or  the  stars  of  heaven.  But  in  this  college  we  are 
open  to  receive  light  from  every  quarter,  and  are  pre- 
pared to  admit  history,  and  modern  literature,  and 
every  branch  of  true  science." 


136  PRYOR :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

"  The  class  now  before  me  is  the  largest  that  ever 
graduated  in  this  college.  It  contains  as  many  bright 
and  promising  youths  as  any  class  which  old  Nassau 
has  sent  forth  from  her  walls.  Your  Alma  Mater  will 
watch  over  your  future  career  with  intense  interest — 
with  hope  not  unmingled  with  anxiety;  will  rejoice  to 
hear  of  you,  prospering  in  this  world,  healthy,  happy; 
but  will  rejoice  ten  thousand  times  more  when  she 
hears  of  you,  whether  in  prosperity  or  adversity,  being 
good  and  doing  good  ;  and  she  will  shed  a  silent  but 
sad  and  bitter  tear  should  she  hear  of  any  of  you  de- 
clining from  the  paths  of  rectitude  and  purity.  But 
let  me  tell  you  that  this  mother's  love  is  somewhat  of 
a  jealous  love.  She  will  be  disappointed  if  you  forget 
her ;  if  you  do  not  come  up  from  time  to  time  to  visit 
her  on  this  pleasant  height  on  which  she  dwells,  to 
revive  old  recollections  in  your  bosoms,  and  make  her 
feel  as  if  she  were  yet  young,  when  she  sees  her  boys 
gathering  around  her,  and  listens  to  them  as  they  tell 
with  their  own  lips  what  they  are  doing,  and  what  God 
is  doing  for  them  and  by  them.  In  short,  as  she  loves 
you  with  a  mother's  affection,  she  expects  you  to  love 
her  in  return  with  a  filial  regard. " 

On  the  evening  of  the  same  day,  the  class  met  for 
the  last  Sunday  evening  prayer-meeting  in  Mr.  Wm. 
Spencer's  room,  number  five  North  College.  Perhaps 
there  is  no  room  in  all  the  older  college  dormitories 
that  has  not  been  consecrated  by  more  or  less  earnest 
prayer,  at  some  time  during  the  history  of  the  college. 
But  if  any  one  has  received  a  fuller  consecration  than 
the  others,  it  is  the  room  referred  to  above.  It  con- 


TRIUMPH.  137 

tinued  to  be  a  very  "  Bethel  "  during  the  two  years 
that  the  class  of  '70  met  there  for  prayer  and  praise. 
These  occasions  will  always  be  remembered  as  among 
the  brightest  of  all  the  happy  experiences  of  that  col- 
lege life.  Their  record  shall  be  written  in  heaven  in 
letters  of  gold,  by  the  souls  that  were  born  there. 

The  memory  of  that  last  meeting  must  be  fresh  in 
the  minds  of  all  that  were  gathered  there.  The  room 
was  filled  with  young  men  who  realized  how  narrow 
was  the  line  that  separated  them  from  the  world,  how 
brief  the  space  of  time  during  which  they  could  be 
together  as  a  class.  Pryor  was  there — as  he  had  been 
every  Sunday  since  his  conversion — radiantly  happy, 
the  center  of  a  group  of  friends,  some  of  whom  he 
had  brought  to  this  place  of  prayer.  He  seemed  de- 
termined to  draw  as  much  comfort  and  happiness  as 
possible  from  this  last  social  meeting  with  his  class- 
mates on  earth,  and  if  his  bright  and  joyous  counte- 
nance was  the  index  of  the  feelings  of  his  heart,  he 
must  have  been  eminently  successful.  It  was  an  hour 
whose  history  can  never  be  properly  written  by  human 
pen.  The  Spirit  of  God  brooded  over  praying  and 
melting  hearts,  and  as  we  know,  some  began  to  follow 
Christ  from  that  time.  The  usual  time  for  bringing 
the  meeting  to  a  close  found  many  hearts  loath  to 
leave  the  place,  and  men  tarried  long  under  the  unseen 
power  that  seemed  to  hold  them  together  in  the  still- 
ness of  that  quiet  Sabbath  evening.  The  last  prayer 
was  at  length  uttered,  the  last  word  of  Christian 
exhortation  was  spoken,  and  the  last  hymn  sung 
together  on  earth,  and  with  the  solemn  benediction  of 


138        PRYOB:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

heaven,  they  went  out  into  the  night — out  into  the 
world  ! 

On  the  following  afternoon  the  usual  class-day  exer- 
cises were  celebrated,  the  students  becoming,  for  the 
time  being,  a  self-governing  body.  As  Dr.  McCosh 
very  naively  remarked  early  on  that  day  :  "I  am 
President  of  this  College  364  days,  and  on  the  365th 
these  young  men  take  the  government  out  of  my 
hands.  The  Faculty,  which  is  a  very  grave  body,  gives 
prizes  to  the  best  men ;  but  these  young  men,  when 
they  are  beyond  the  President's  control,  give  a  prize  to 
the  wickedest  man  !  And  they  make  so  many  mis- 
takes, that  I  will  guarantee  that  their  wickedest  man 
turns  out  best  of  all,  and  their  wittiest  man  never 
perpetrated  a  joke  !"  But  if  the  students  did  fall  into 
such  errors  as  the  Doctor  predicted,  they  certainly 
were  never  happier  than  on  this  day.  Heaven  smiled 
upon  them  from  a  sky  that  was  without  a  cloud,  and 
from  beginning  to  end  the  festivities  were  not  marred 
by  a  single  unpleasant  incident.  Time  would  fail  us, 
and  it  would  be  foreign  to  our  subject,  to  tell  of  all 
that  was  done  that  day.  We  must  confine  ourselves 
to  that  particular  part  of  the  proceedings  in  which 
Pry  or  played  an  unwilling  part. 

Among  the  exercises  held  on  the  campus  around  the 
old  cannon — a  revolutionary  relic — was  the  distribu- 
tion of  the  burlesque  prizes  by  the  Presentation  Orator, 
Henry  S.  Harris.  One  of  these  was  voted  to  Pry  or 
for  the  "best  moustache."  Now  Pryor's  face  was  as 
smooth  as  a  child's  !  Covered  with  confusion,  and 
blushing  like  a  girl,  he  left  his  seat,  and  advancing  to 


TRIUMPH.  139 

the  platform,  awaited  the  bestowal  of  the  prize.  The 
few  moments  that  he  stood  there,  ' i  the  observed  of  all 
observers,"  must  have  been  a  period  of  exquisite 
agony  to  him,  who  uniformly  shrunk  from  anything 
approaching  an  exhibition  of  himself.  He  fixed  his 
penetrating  eyes  on  the  speaker,  and  his  color  came 
and  went  as  he  was  addressed  in  these  words  : 

1  i  Hirsute  youth  ;  the  care  and  culture  you  have 
bestowed  upon  your  upper  lip  have  met  with  due  re- 
cognition. Your  flowing  beard  and  fierce  moustache 
now  flourish  beneath  the  smiles  of  the  fair.  Oh,  how 
much  more  beautiful  is  yours  than  Shelby's !  Poor 
Shelby  !  only  three  votes.  Let  me  here  note  a  coinci- 
dence. You  see  Shelby  got  three  votes,  and  Jo. 
Guernsey  got  eight,  Kline  got  one,  and  Sam  Irwin 
one.  Just  exactly  as  many  votes  apiece  as  hairs.  To 
go  on — Our  class,  Mr.  Pryor,  have  always  gazed  upon 
your  beardal  development  with  becoming  pride  ;  yet 
they  have  further  observed  that  your  moustache  has  a 
tendency  to  turn  in — in  fact  to  disappear  altogether 
sometimes.  Their  presents  look  to  the  cure  of  this 
tendency.  First,  we  have  here  a  corn-cob,  a  famous 
assistant  for  bringing  up  young  moustaches/  Next  a 
cup,*  which  you  will  find  most  convenient.  You  have 
only  to  apply  your  mouth  to  the  spout,  and  then  'each 
particular  hair '  being  entirely  free  from  any  inter, 
course  with  your  '  grub,'  your  moustache  will  never 
become  a  post-prandial  bill  of  fare.  No  reference  is 
intended  to  the  bill  of  the  fair.  It  will  always  be  well  for 

*  A  kerosene  can. 


140  PRY  OR  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

your  moustache  to  come  in  contact  with.  that.  Next, 
a  pair  of  shears,  which  will  be  nice  to  cut  out  the  short 
hairs  with.  Lastly,  I  present  you  with  a  }7oung  kitten. 
This  you  will  find  most  efficacious.  Whenever  your 
moustache  has  '  struck  in,'  in  the  way  I  spoke  of,  let 
this  pussy  lick  your  face,  and  it  will  return  to  l  strike 
in '  no  more." 

The  festivities  of  the  day  concluded  with  a  grand 
promenade  concert.  The  whole  college  grounds  were 
lighted  with  Chinese  lanterns  suspended  from  the  trees ; 
and  until  late  at  night,  the  crowd  of  happy  visitors 
stepped  to  the  numbers  of  the  sweetest  music,  and 
wandered  about  in  the  full  enjoyment  of  the  bland 
summer  evening.  "  Fond  hearts  lingered  long  under 
the  monster  elms  which  had  bowered  them  through 
the  years  of  happy  college-life — the  same  elms  which 
kissed  the  same  calm  sky  they  wooed  four  years  before, 
and  which  drooped  their  trailing  limbs  lovingly  to  the 
same  earth  that  steadily  and  quietly  wrought  in  them 
their  stature  and  their  strength.  The  throng  gradually 
disappeared,  until  only  here  and  there  was  heard  the 
loitering  foot-fall  of  some  benighted  dreamer  strolling 
along  the  walks  of  the  deserted  grounds,  or  the  sub- 
dued voices  of  the  class  quartette  singing  for  the  last 
time — i  Home,  Sweet  Home. '  The  lights  glimmered 
one  by  one  ;  and  one  by  one,  like  breaking  hopes,  they 
melted  away  into  darkness.  The  risen  moon  dappled 
the  ground  beneath  the  trees,  touching  Old  Nassau's 
spire  with  silver,  and  slanting  its  loftiness — as  memory 
slants  grief — in  long,  dark,  tapering  lines  upon  the 
silvered  green. " 


TRIUMPH.  141 

Wednesday  witnessed  Pryor's  triumph.  All  the 
labors  and  studies  of  his  college  course  culminated  in 
the  honors  that  fell  thick  upon  him  on  the  Commence- 
ment Stage.  He  was  the  hero  of  the  occasion.  His 
average  grade,  which  secured  him  the  first  honor,  was 
only  a  tenth  short  of  absolute  perfection  !  In  all  the 
previous  history  of  the  college  this  mark  had  been  ob- 
tained by  only  one  other — Aaron  Burr,  in  1772.  We 
must  not,  however,  think  of  Burr's  standing  as  being 
in  any  sense  equivalent  to  Pryor's,  any  more  than  we 
would  say  that  Princeton  College  in  1870  was  in  no  re- 
spect different  from  the  same  institution  in  1772. 
What  the  qualifications  were  for  admission  into  col- 
lege at  the  latter  date,  may  be  inferred  from  a  remark 
in  one  of  Pierpont  Edwards'  letters.  He  writes:  "I 
am  reading  Yirgil  and  Greek  grammar.  I  would  have 
entered  college,  but  my  constitution  would  not  bear  it, 
being  weak."  A  boy  able  to  read  Virgil,  and  who  had 
some  acquaintance  with  Greek  grammar,  could  have 
obtained  admission  to  the  Freshman  Class  at  Prince- 
ton at  that  time.  Therefore,  when  we  consider  the 
progress  made  by  the  college  during  the  years  that 
elapsed  between  Burr's  graduation  and  Pryor's,  we 
must  assign  to  the  latter  the  very  highest  place  of  dis- 
tinction. 

The  oration  assigned  to  Pryor  was  the  "Latin 
Salutatory."  This  he  delivered  before  the  unquestion- 
ably select  and  vast  audience  which  had  assembled  to 
listen  to  the  Commencement  Orators.  Viewed  in  the 
act  of  speaking  this  composition,  he  might  well  be  con- 
sidered as  having  attained  to  one  of  the  highest  of  all 


142         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

his  earthly  successes.  Bright  and  beautiful,  in  the 
full  vigor  of  his  early  manhood,  and  flushed  with  the 
excitement  of  the  occasion,  he  stood  welcoming  in 
elegant  Latin  the  guardians,  officers,  and  friends  of  the 
college.  The  address  was  listened  to  with  the  most 
profound  attention,  and  at  its  conclusion  received  con- 
tinued rounds  of  hearty  applause. 

The  awarding  of  Fellowship  and  Prizes  followed  the 
orations,  and  here  again  Pryor  came  in  for  his  share  of 
the  honors.  He  received  the  Jay  Cooke  Mathematical 
Fellowship,  yielding  the  sum  of  $600,  payable  in  quar- 
terly installments.  As  the  successful  competitors  for 
the  various  prizes  were  announced,  they  appeared  be- 
fore Dr.  McCosh  on  the  platform  for  congratulation, 
and  were  loudly  applauded  by  the  audience.  When 
Pryor  appeared,  he  was  greeted  with  a  wild  burst  of 
enthusiasm  from  the  students.  The  President  took 
him  kindly  by  the  hand,  and  in  his  happy  way  ex- 
pressed the  peculiar  pleasure  which  the  bestowal  of 
this — the  First  Mathematical  Fellowship — gave  him. 
He  alluded  to  Pryor's  examination,  and  said  that  it 
was  the  most  remarkable  in  the  annals  of  the  college. 
It  almost  challenged  belief. 

Such  was  the  triumphant  end  of  that  beautiful  stu- 
dent life  which  Pryor  lived  at  Princeton.  The 
flowers  that  were  showered  upon  him  in  that  final  hour 
of  triumph  are  long  since  withered  and  dead  ;  the 
shouts  of  the  applauding  multitudes,  and  the  words  of 
compliment  and  praise  then  spoken,  have  died  upon  the 
ear  ;  but  the  position  which  he  obtained  and  the  suc- 
cesses he  achieved  have  passed  into  the  history  of 


TRIUMPH. 


143 


Princeton  College,  and  can  never  be  erased  from  its 
record,  or  be  forgotten  by  its  sons.  Bright  among  the 
names  of  his  Alma  Mater  must  ever  be  the  name  of 
the  Mathematical-Fellow  and  First  Honor  Man  of  the 
Class  of  1870. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  MATHEMATICAL-FELLOW. 

"As  streams  that  run  o'er  golden  mines, 

Yet  humbly,  calmly  glide  ; 
Nor  seem  to  know  the  wealth  that  shines 

Within  their  gentle  tide  ; 
So,  veiled  beneath  the  simplest  guise, 

Thy  radiant  genius  shone, 
And  that  which  charm'd  all  other  eyes 

Seemed  worthless  in  thy  own." 

HE  festivities  of  Commencement  at  Princeton 
were  over.      The  members  of  the  graduating 
class  lingered  for  a  few  moments  in  their  col- 
lege home — 

"  Where  oft,  as  brothers,  they  had  met  to  count 
The  beads  of  memory,  and  to  weave  a  thread 
Of  sadness  in  the  sunny  chain  whose  links — 
Whose  breaking  links  had  bound  their  hearts  in  one," 

then  went  their  several  ways  into  the  busy  world.  The 
last  sands  had  dropped  from  the  hour-glass  of  College 
Life,  and  the  sad  farewell  that  severs  heart  from  heart 
had  fallen  from  trembling  lips.  On  the  last  day  of 


146  PRYOR  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

June,  Pry  or  bade  adieu  to  his  venerated  teachers, 
parted  from  his  beloved  comrades,  and  the  gates  of  the 
Paradise  of  College  Life  shut  behind  him.  Of  the 
eighty-five  classmates  with  whom,  up  to  that  hour,  he 
had  been  so  happily  associated,  but  few  ever  saw  him 
afterwards.  To  many  he  was  seen  for  the  last  time 
when  old  Princeton  twined  her  fairest  laurel  'round  his 
head,  while  her  children  made  her  ancient  walls  shake 
above  their  thrilling  plaudits.  Under  what  better 
circumstances  could  their  happy  glances  have  rested 
on  their  leader  for  the  last  time  on  earth  ! 

Leaving  Princeton,  Pry  or  returned  to  his  home  in 
Brooklyn.  That  he  suffered  severely  from  the  change 
is  evident  from  the  tone  of  his  letters  during  this 
period.  He  felt  that  his  happiest  days  had  fled  into 
the  great  past,  and  he  could  only  live  them  over  again 
in  memory.  His  walks  were  solitary;  no  friendly 
voices  cheered  him  as  of  old,  no  congenial  soul  became 
the  partner  of  his  joys  or  sorrows.  In  the  midst  of 
those  endeared  to  him  by  the  ties  of  blood,  he  yet  felt 
the  want  of  a  friend.  Life  would  have  been  wearisome 
and  wretched  if  he  had  not  been  able  to  depend  upon 
himself  for  enjoyment.  Writing  of  the  associates 
from  whom  he  had  been  separated,  he  says :  "I  have 
been  wishing  to  see  them  even  more  than  I  wished  to 
go  home,  a  few  weeks  after  I  entered  college.  I  recol- 
lect that  home-sickness  then  seemed  to  me  the  greatest 
of  earthly  evils.  Now  it  is  nothing  to  separation  from 
classmates." 

He  t  might  have  suffered  less  from  this  separation, 
had  it  not  occurred  under  the  circumstances  which  it 


THE    MATHEMATICAL-FELLOW.  147 

did.  It  was  the  summer  season,  and  Brooklyn  was 
fairly  deserted  by  the  friends  of  his  family,  among 
whom  he  might  otherwise  have  found  that  intercourse 
which  he  now  sought  in  vain.  As  it  was,  the  history 
of  his  daily  life  was  only  the  record  of  a  continual 
struggle  with  his  feelings.  He  was  smothering  a  fire 
which  threatened  to  consume  him.  More  than  all  did 
he  miss  the  ready  sympathy  of  the  friends  with  whom 
he  had  been  accustomed  to  converse.  He  thought  he 
needed  them  in  the  new  life  upon  which  he  had  entered 
— a  fiction  flattering  to  them,  but  having  no  foundation 
in  reality. 

It  is  to  be  regretted,  however,  that  Pryor  passed 
directly  from  the  softly-tempered  atmosphere  of  re- 
ligious Princeton  into  the  trying  air  of  an  unregenerate 
world.  A  brief  sojourn  in  some  such  retreat  as  Maurice 
De  Guerin  found  in  the  romantic  home  of  his  friend 
La  Morvannais,  would  have  been  just  what  he  needed  : 
"Change  from  the  sanctuary  of  the  college  to  a  house 
raised  on  the  border  of  two  regions,  where,  without 
being  in  solitude,  one  still  does  not  belong  to  the 
world ;  a  house  whose  windows  open,  on  the  one  side 
upon  the  plain  covered  with  the  tumult  of  men ;  the 
other  upon  the  desert,  where  the  servants  of  God  are 
singing;  there  upon  the  ocean,  here  upon  the  world." 

At  this  time,  however,  the  pain  of  separation  did 
not  make  Pryor  misanthropic  or  sour;  it  produced 
only  those  feelings  of  sadness  which  were  naturally  to 
be  expected.  He  now  won  the  victory  over  himself  by 
keeping  watch  over  his  tendencies,  and  adjusting  them 
to  the  sober  standards  of  reason.  He  was  too  wise  to 


148         PKYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

waste  in  idle  lamentations,  over  what  was  forever  gone, 
the  energies  which  should  be  used  in  surviving  its  de- 
parture. He  was,  perhaps,  lonelier  at  this  period  than 
ever  before  in  his  life,  but  he  wisely  shunned  the  evils 
and  nobly  gained  the  benefits  of  his  isolation.  Still 
laboring  to  perfect  himself,  he  disinterestedly  served 
his  fellow  men,  resolutely  sought  truth,  and  humbly 
worshipped  God.  In  this  way  he  neutralized  misery 
and  was  still  cheerful ;  exerting  a  noble  influence,  and 
setting  a  redemptive  example — an  influence  and  exam- 
ple which  the  knowledge  of  his  pure  life  promises  to 
diffuse  arid  perpetuate.  Epictetus  says  :  ' '  Solitude 
is  the  reaction  of  the  soul  without  an  object  and 
without  a  product.  If  our  activity  has  products,  those 
products  serve  as  comrades.  But  if  our  activity  is  the 
overflow  of  unemployed  powers,  with  no  object  to 
meet  and  return  it,  and  no  object  to  embody  and  re- 
flect it,  we  are  conscious  of  an  unrelieved  loneliness." 
Pryor  seems  to  have  understood  at  last  the  principle 
herein  set  forth,  and  to  have  sought  and  found  friendly 
occupation. 

The  Rev.  S.  W.  Plumer,  Professor  of  the  Theologi- 
cal Seminary  at  Columbia,  S.  C.,  and  an  old  friend  of 
Gen.  Pryor 's  family,  was  at  this  time  in  New  York 
City,  superintending  the  publication  of  one  of  his 
theological  works.  He  proposed  to  employ  Pryor  as 
an  assistant  proof-reader,  and  an  arrangement  was 
made  to  begin  at  once.  The  task  was  one  of  great 
responsibility,  and  required  considerable  ability  and 
care  for  revision  and  the  verification  of  quotations. 
He  entered  upon  the  work  with  great  zest,  and  per- 


THE    MATHEMATICAL-FELLOW.  149 

formed  his  p&rt  with  a  faithfulness  that  called  forth 
the  highest  praise  from  his  friend,  the  distinguished 
author  of  the  book.  This  labor  was  one  of  double 
advantage,  affording  occupation  for  and  disciplining  his 
mind,  besides  bringing  him  into  daily  contact  with 
such  an  intellect  as  he  was  eminently  fitted  to  appre- 
ciate and  study  for  the  benefit  of  his  own.  Several 
hours  each  day  were  spent  in  this  severe  but  delightful 
labor  and  this  uniformly  pleasant  intercourse.  In  the 
prosecution  of  this  work,  his  extensive  reading  and 
wide  acquaintance  with  the  world  of  letters  proved  of 
excellent  service  to  him.  Here,  as  elsewhere,  he  was 
reaping  the  fruit  of  a  strict  adherence  to  his  father's 
kindly  advice,  given  to  him  while  he  was  yet  a  boy,  to 
read  nothing  that  was  not  destined  to  live,  or  which 
would  not  in  some  way  repay  him  for  his  trouble.  He 
did  not  live  to  see  in  print  the  book  which  he  assisted 
in  preparing  for  the  press,  and  which  he  must  have 
learned  to  love  by  daily  contact.  A  copy  of  it  has  a 
place  to-day  in.  the  library  once  his,  but  it  stands  only 
as  a  monument  of  his  industry,  and  a  sad  reminder  of 
the  time  when  his  eyes  scanned  the  written  leaves  of 
the  weighty  folio.  There  is  a  testimony  here  to  be 
added,  which,  owing  to  the  eminent  source  from  which 
it  comes,  cannot  fail  to  enlist  the  interest  of  every 
reader : 

"THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY,  COLUMBIA,  S.  C. ,  \ 
il  Nov.  9th,  1871.      } 

"In  June,  1870,  I  was  superintending  the  publica- 
tion of  my  Commentary  on  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans; 
and  I  secured  the  aid  of  Mr.    Theo.    B.  Pryor  as  an 
11 


150         PKYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

assistant  proof-reader.  We  were  commonly  together 
three  or  four  hours  a  day,  most  of  which  was  spent  in 
our  work.  I  discovered  in  him  unusual  accuracy  in 
83holarship,  a  retentive  memory,  exceeding  amiability, 
a  warmly  pious  disposition,  and  a  readiness  to  learn 
that  was  very  remarkable.  As  his  service  was  chiefly 
for  my  benefit,  I  felt  a  desire  to  make  some  return.  I 
proposed  to  give  him  lessons  in  the  Law  of  Nature  and 
in  the  Law  of  Nations.  A  Burlemagin  was  procured 
and  a  few  lessons  gone  ever.  But  the  weather  becom- 
ing hot,  his  father  advised  him  to  remit  so  close  study. 
After  that  there  were  no  more  formal  lessons ;  but 
every  day  I  had  some  topic  of  conversation  that  might 
be  useful  to  him,  if  we  had  thirty  minutes  or  more  un- 
occupied with  proof-reading.  All  who  have  studied 
such  subjects,  know  how  many  hard  and  perplexing 
questions  arise.  I  have  taught  the  elements  of  law  to 
many  young  men;  and  among  them  all  I  never  had 
but  one  who  was  so  clear,  so  completely  beyond  the 
reach  of  confusion.  His  mind  refused  all  needless 
complications.  Its  powers  of  analysis  were  nearly 
prodigious.  He  would  do  nothing  on  any  question 
until  he  had  cleared  it  of  everything  foreign  to  the  in- 
quiry. He  hated  circumlocution  and  indirection. 

' '  In  all  this  he  was  as  artless  as  a  child,  and  as 
modest  as  a  woman.  I  still  regard  him  as  one  of  the 
most  precious  young  men  I  have  ever  known.  When 
I  met  him  in  June,  1871,  he  told  me  that  his  views  on 
religious  subjects  had  undergone  a  change.  But  be- 
yond that  simple  declaration  I  could  perceive  no  differ- 
ence. He  was  still  an  eager  listener  to  the  preached 


THE    MATHEMATICAL-FELLOW.  151 

gospel,  and  was  still  as  kind  and  friendly  to  Christians 
and  ministers  as  ever.  When  I  review  his  history  for 
two  or  three  years  past,  it  seems  to  me  like  the  way  of 
an  eagle  through  the  air.  I  wonder  at  what  I  saw  and 
remember.  There  is  now  no  longer  any  cause  of  doubt, 
that  for  some  time  past  his  mind  has  been  too  strong 
for  his  body,  and  that  his  reason  finally  dropped  her 
sceptre  and  left  his  mind  a  wreck.  I  loved  him.  I 
miss  him.  I  weep  for  his  untimely  end. 

"  WILLIAM  S.   PLTJMER." 

So  passed  the  summer.  In  September  some  decision 
was  to  be  made  as  to  his  course  of  action  for  the  fol- 
lowing twelve  months.  The  laws  of  Princeton  College 
require  the  student  who  obtains  a  Fellowship,  "  to  pur- 
sue his  studies  in  the  department  for  which  the  Fellow- 
ship is  provided  for  one  year,  under  the  superintend- 
ence of  the  Faculty,  and  to  live  in  Princeton,  or  appear 
in  Princeton  from  time  to  time  as  may  be  appointed  ; 
or  if  he  study  at  a  foreign  university,  to  furnish  regu- 
lar written  reports  of  what  he  is  doing."  It  was 
Pryor's  desire  to  teach  in  the  neighborhood  of  Prince- 
ton, and  with  a  view  to  this  he  had  secured  a  position 
in  the  Academy  at  Lawrence ville,  five  miles  from  the 
College.  This  plan  he  was  informed  he  could  not  con- 
sistently with  the  conditions  of  the  Fellowship  carry 
out.  Dr.  McCosh's  pet  project  was  to  send  him  to 
Cambridge,  England,  and  he  strongly  urged  this  as  the 
best  course  for  one  of  Pryor's  marked  mathematical 
tastes  and  abilities.  This  plan  was  perhaps  least  pleas- 
ant of  all  to  Pryor,  and  was  not  very  warmly  seconded 
by  his  friends,  more  especially  by  his  mother. 


152        PRYOE:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

As  no  certain  decision  had  yet  been  reachd,  Pry  or 
entered  the  Theological  Seminary  at  Princeton  early 
in  September,  and  began  a  joint  course  of  Theological 
and  Mathematical  studies.  This,  though  having  no 
certain  hope  of  long  continuance,  was  for  the  time  a 
source  of  great  pleasure  to  him.  A  large  number  of 
those  who  had  been  associated  with  him  in  college 
joined  the  Junior  class  in  the  seminary  at  the  same 
time  with  him.  He  began  to  live  over  again  the  old 
life,  and  found  it  even  pleasanter  than  before.  He 
now  enjoyed  the  companionship  of  perhaps  more  and 
better  friends,  and  the  studies  on  which  he  was  en- 
gaged were  eminently  congenial  to  his  tastes.  He  im- 
mediately displayed  great  proficiency  in  Hebrew,  and 
his  recitations  in  this  as  in  all  other  branches  were  a 
repetition  of  his  former  perfection  in  this  particular. 
Those  associated  with  him  hoped  that  he  would  be  al- 
lowed to  continue  with  them,  and  congratulated  them- 
selves upon  this  accession  to  the  number  of  those  who 
were  preparing  to  be  the  evangels  of  the  Christian 
religion.  But  these  hopes  were  not  to  be  realized. 
After  a  few  weeks,  arrangements  were  made  to  send 
the  "  Mathematical -Fello w  "  abroad,  and  he  prepared  to 
leave  Princeton.  To  this  brief  period  in  his  life  Pryor 
never  ceased  to  look  back,  as  a  time  when  he  ceased  to 
think  for  himself,  and  yielded  himself  to  the  wishes 
of  others.  He  would  have  preferred  to  remain  as  he 
was  in  the  supreme  happiness  of  the  life  he  was  then 
leading.  But  his  seniors  had  decided  otherwise,  and 
he  obeyed.  Perhaps  this  course  ivas  the  best.  His 
mind  may  have  suffered  an  earlier  eclipse  if  it  had  not 


THE    MATHEMATICAL-FELLOW. 


153 


been  thus  diverted.  Be  this  as  it  may,  Pryor  cast  a 
look  of  unutterable  regret  behind  him  as  he  passed 
out  of  Princeton  for  the  second  time — to  return  to  it 
never  again  as  a  student ! 


CHAPTEE  XV 

ON   ENGLISH  SOIL. 

"  He  reads  much  ; 
He  is  a  close  observer,  and  he  looks 
Quite  through  the  deeds  of  men." 

— Julius  Ccesar,  Act  I,  Scene  2. 

REPARATIONS  for  the  voyage  were  soon  made, 
and  the  great  ocean  steamer  left  the  harbor  of 
New  York,  bearing  Pryor  from  the  land  of  his 
birth,  his  home  and  his  friends.  The  trip  was  an 
exceedingly  tempestuous  and  disagreeable  one,  and  in 
consequence,  all  on  board  suffered  much  from  sea-sick- 
ness. Aside  from  this,  the  voyage  afforded  no  incident. 
Land  was  seen  on  the  tenth  day,  and  in  a  few  hours 
later  the  Mersey  was  entered,  and  anchor  dropped 
opposite  the  busy  city  of  Liverpool. 

Pryor  went  immediately  up  to  London,  and  there 
passed  one  week  in  sight-seeing.  "I  spent  a  day,"  he 
writes,  uat  the  Crystal  Palace,  and  might  have  gone 
there  daily  for  a  week  without  being  tired.  There  is 
an  exhaustless  number  of  paintings  and  statues.  Be- 
sides these  there  are  a  great  many  curiosities,  but  I 


156  PRYOR :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

scarcely  think  they  are  worth  so  much  attention."  He 
also  went  up  to  "the  ball  of  St.  Paul's,"  but,  to  his 
great  disappointment,  found  too  much  fog  for  a  good 
view  of  the  city.  Two  places  of  the  greatest  interest 
he  failed  to  see — "  Westminster  Abbey"  and  the 
"Tower,"  but  expressed  his  intention  of  making  an- 
other trip  to  the  metropolis  to  see  them. 

From  London  he  went  directly  to  Cambridge,  and 
reported  himself  to  the  authorities.  A  few  days  later 
he  was  furnished  with  his  student's  apparel,  and  began 
the  duties  of  his  new  life  shortly  after  the  opening  of 
the  Michaelmas  term.  Notwithstanding  he  had  gradu- 
ated from  an  American  college,  into  which  his  entrance 
was  considerably  delayed,  his  age  at  entering  St.  Peter's 
College  at  Cambridge  was  but  little  above  the  Univer- 
sity average.  This  was  owing  to  a  great  diversity 
between  the  systems  of  education  adopted  by  the  Eng- 
lish and  American  colleges.  Students  enter  the  former 
at  an  age  comparatively  mature,  and  after  having  been 
thoroughly  drilled  by  a  long  course  of  study  in  the  best 
preparatory  schools.  Boys  are  sent  at  an  early  age  to 
Eton,  Harrow  or  Westminster,  and  remain  there  until 
fitted  for  college.  With  us,  the  case  is  different.  Our 
institutions  seem  to  occupy  a  place  midway  between 
the  English  academy *  and  university.  Pryor  was, 
therefore,  in  just  the  condition  to  appreciate,  to  the 
fullest  extent,  the  course  of  study  upon  which  he  now 
entered. 

He  found  much  that  was  new  and  a  little  that  was 
unpleasant  in  the  habits,  manners  and  pursuits  of  the 
men  with  whom  he  became  associated.  He  was  a  boy 


ON   ENGLISH    SOIL.  157 

of  too  high  tone  to  see  the  necessity  of  some  of  the 
disciplinary  regulations  of  the  University.  The  con- 
sciousness of  being  constantly  under  the  surveillance 
of  the  "  omnipresent,  omniscient  and  argus-eyed  peace- 
officers  who  patrol  the  streets,  accompanied  by  their 
faithful  attendants,  familiarly  ycleped  the  ' bull-dogs,'" 
he  considered  belittling  and  unpleasant.  The  sanitary 
habits  of  English  students  he  early  adopted,  and  prac- 
ticed con  amore  for  a  considerable  time.  Two  or  three 
hours  every  day  he  devoted  to  athletic  sports  in  the 
open  air,  spending  most  of  the  time,  however,  in  boating 
and  walking.  For  the  latter  he  found  the  surrounding 
country  well  adapted,  foot-paths  smooth  as  a  gravel 
walk  skirting  all  the  roads,  offering  every  inducement 
to  pedestrian  exercise.  He  also  allowed  himself  more 
time  for  sleep  than  was  his  custom  heretofore. 

To  one  of  Pryor's  mental  constitution  and  tastes,  we 
may  readily  suppose  the  scenes  and  objects  around  him 
to  have  afforded  a  vast  amount  of  pleasure.  The  Gothic 
architecture  of  the  colleges  among  which  he  lived, 
modelled  from  nature  and  interesting  by  associations, 
is  calculated  to  awaken  in  the  mind  thoughts  of  all 
that  is  venerable  and  time-honored.  Fuller  speaks  of 
these  buildings  as  the  "rarest  fabrics  in  Christendom, 
wherein  the  stone- work,  wood- work  and  glass-work 
contend  which  most  deserve  admiration."  King's  Col- 
lege Chapel  is  esteemed  by  connoisseurs  the  most  perfect 
specimen  of  its  kind  in  the  world.  Its  roofs,  unsup- 
ported by  a  pillar,  are  "so  geometrically  contrived  that 
voluminous  stones  naturally  support  themselves  in  the 
arched  roof,  as  if  Art  had  made  them  forget  Nature, 


158         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

and  weaned  them  from  their  fondness  to  descend  to 
their  centre."  The  construction  of  this  edifice  puz- 
zles the  best  architects.  Sir  Christopher  Wren  was 
accustomed  to  go  to  it  once  a  year  to  survey  it,  and 
once  said  that  f (  if  any  man  would  show  him  where  to 
place  the  first  stone,  he  would  engage  to  build  such 
another."  Massive  towers  and  flying  buttresses 
strengthen  and  support  every  part  of  the  building. 
The  interior  is  grand  and  imposing,  elaborately  carved, 
and  adorned  with  quaint  and  grotesque  devices  from 
roof  to  pavement.  Its  windows — the  finest  in  Europe 
— are  richly  painted,  and  when  at  vespers,  arrayed  in 
their  white  robes, 

"  Assembled  men  to  the  deep  organ  join 
The  long-resounding  voice,  oft  breaking  clear. 
At  solemn  pauses,  through  the  swelling  base," 

the  effect  is  indescribably  solemn  and  fine. 

The  grounds  are  scarcely  less  interesting  than  the 
buildings.  The  Cam,  a  gentle,  placid  stream,  leisurely 
meanders  through  the  principal  gardens,  crossed  by 
light  and  airy  bridges;  and  its  banks,  rolled  and  shaven, 
invite  the  observer  to  linger  long  and  view  their  lovely 
scenery.  Boats,  gaily  painted  and  adorned,  and 
manned  by  athletic  youths  in  aquatic  garb,  cleave  the 
smooth  surface  of  the  river,  shooting  with  regular 
strokes  up  and  down  the  stream.  The  picture  is  fairy- 
like  and  enchanting.  Once  seen,  it  can  never  be 
forgotten. 

The  climate  of  Cambridge,  which  is  somewhat  damp 
and  foggy,  though  generally  mild  and  healthy,  was 
very  trying  to  Pryor.  His  health  continued  good 


ON    ENGLISH    SOIL.  159 

throughout  his  stay,  but  his  spirits  were  sorely  tested. 
Every  one  is  sensible  to  the  exhilerating  effects  of 
clear,  sunny  skies,  and  the  contrary  effects  of  an  over- 
clouded heaven  and  a  heavy  atmosphere.  All  are 
cheered  by  sunshine  and  depressed  by  gloom,  from  a 
simple  principle  of  the  mind's  taking  pleasure  in  that 
which  looks  bright  and  cheerful,  and  being  dejected  by 
the  sight  of  whatever  is  dull  and  dismal.  It  is  one  of 
the  few  places  where  Boswell  exceeds  in  wisdom  the 
subject  of  his  biography,  when  in  a  reply  to  a  remark 
of  Johnson  on  the  silliness  of  those  who  believe  their 
minds  to  be  affected  by  meteorological  causes,  he  ex- 
claims :  "Alas,  it  is  too  certain  that,  where  the  frame 
has  delicate  fibres,  and  there  is  a  fine  sensibility,  such 
influences  of  the  air  are  irresistible  !" 

"  Not  always  actions  show  the  man :  we  find 
Who  does  a  kindness  is  not  therefore  kind: 
Perhaps'prosperity  becalmed  his  breast; 
Perhaps  the  wind  Just  shifted  from  the  east." 

After  the  positive  alternates  of  clear  and  rainy 
weather  which  Pryor  had  been  accustomed  to  in 
America,  the  protracted  periods  of  fog,  drizzle,  and 
sickly  sunshine  at  Cambridge  soon  began  to  affect  his 
nervous  system.  It  was  here  that  he  first  manifested 
and  afterwards  retained  a  morbidly  sensitive  state  of 
mind  which  had  never  before  existed  in  him  to  such  a 
degree.  The  abnormal  condition  of  his  mind  was  fur- 
ther increased  and  aggravated  by  the  unsociable  dis- 
position of  the  students  with  whom  he  was  brought  in- 
to contact.  Comparing  the  frigid  Englishmen  around 
him  with  the  warm-hearted  and  impulsive  companions 


160         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

of  his  former  student  life,  Pryor  could  not  but  notice 
and  be  influenced  unfavorably  by  the  contact.  He 
lived  almost  alone,  without  a  human  being  to  whom 
he  could  communicate  his  deep  thoughts  and  feelings ; 
and  passed  through  intellectual  and  moral  conflicts  so 
absorbing  as  often  to  banish  all  interest  even  in  his 
favorite  mathematical  studies.  Sometimes  he  would 
lock  himself  up  in  his  room  and  remain  there  during 
the  entire  day,  fighting  in  solitude  the  most  fearful 
battles  with  gloomy  feelings. 

At  such  times  study  was  out  of  the  question,  and 
when  attempted  brought  on  irritable  and  nervous  dis- 
gust. Pryor  was  keenly  alive  to  this  incubus  and 
strove  to  escape  from  it.  He  reduced  his  tasks  and 
even  resorted  to  light  literature  for  this  purpose,  but 
in  vain.  He  had  the  best  digestion,  firm  strength, 
and  sound  sleep,  but  his  restless  longings  in  the  social 
direction,  all  unsatisfied,  kept  him  in  irritating  rela- 
tions to  the  world,  and  made  him  an  unhappy  sufferer. 
To  look  to  others,  either  with  humble  supplication  as 
did  Guerin,  with  irate  command  as  did  Schopenhauer, 
or  with  mute  expectation  as  did  Pryor,  for  the  sympa- 
thy which  they  cannot  or  will  not  give,  is  to  be  miser- 
able. We  read  that  in  the  story  of  La  Picciola  a 
simple  flower  became  the  light,  the  comrade,  the  angel 
and  Paradise  of  the  poor  prisoner  in  whose  cell  it 
grew!  Pryor  could  not  boast  a  companion  equal  in 
congeniality  to  even  this  little  flower.  And  yet,  sad 
as  was  his  life,  and  great  as  was  the  depression  of 
spirits  under  which  he  sometimes  labored,  his  life  at 
Cambridge  cannot  be  called  less  than  a  grand  success. 


ON    ENGLISH    SOIL.  1G1 

Separated  from  the  community  in  which  he  lived,  he 
walked  the  streets  of  Cambridge  alone,  sat  by  his  fire 
alone,  worked  alone,  without  the  slightest  faltering  in 
his  aim,  his  strong  intellectual  desires  supporting  him, 
and  his  intense  craving  for  knowledge  ever  driving  him 
steadily  onward. 

"His  English  life,"  writes  his  sister,  "was  produc- 
tive of  little  incident.  He  found  no  friends  so  con- 
genial as  his  Princeton  college-mates  had  been,  and  he 
devoted  himself  while  at  Cambridge  entirely  to  his 
mathematics  and  to  reading ;  taking  however,  as  he 
told  me,  much  exercise  and  sleep.  I  do  not  think  he 
formed  an  agreeable  idea  of  the  English  character.  It 
appeared  to  him  selfish,  cold,  and  conceited.  He  en- 
vied the  Irish  and  Scotch,  the  physical  strength  which 
enabled  them  to  study  fifteen  hours  out  of  the  twenty- 
four  with  an  impunity  vainly  coveted  by  Americans." 

During  his  stay  in  Cambridge,  Pryor  wrote  several 
letters  to  a  friend  in  Princeton,  from  one  of  which 
was  taken  the  folio  wing,  which  appeared  in  the  "  College 
World,"  and  with  which  we  shall  close  this  chapter. 

' '  ST.  PETER'S  COLLEGE,  CAMBRIDGE,  ENG.  ,  ) 
"  March  21st,  1871.       J 

"  MESSRS.  EDITORS  : — Your  special  correspondent  at 
Cambridge  is  glad  to  make  himself  known  to  your 
readers.  He  wishes  them  much  pleasure  in  what  he 
feels  assured  will  be  the  success  of  their  new  paper. 
Meanwhile,  until  it  gets  something  of  a  momentum 
let  them  be  a  little  chary  of  their  criticisms;  for  they 
might  prove  retarding  forces. 


162  PJBYOR  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

"  I  enjoyed  the  sweets  of  an  ocean-voyage  to  the 
full,  being  sea-sick  six  days  and  not  remarkably  well 
the  other  four.  I  never  before  felt  so  fully  that  '  the 
stomach  is  the  seat  of  the  soul. '  My  soul  was  entirely 
gone,  and  I  can  give  you  no  very  edifying  description 
of  the  poetry  of  the  sea.  On  board  the  vessel,  by  the 
way,  was  a  German  who  may  be  said  to  have  afforded 
a  first-rate  illustration  of  the  power  of  love — for 
although  about  as  sick  as  I,  he  wrote  hi&fraulein  a  let- 
ter thirty-two  pages  long — at  least  that  is  the  story  the 
passengers  told  of  him.  I  cannot  tell  you  exactly  how 
I  felt  at  landing  on  English  soil!  It  was  somewhat  as 
if  I  had  just  recovered  a  long-lost  feeling  of  patriotism, 
— but  it  was  soon  dispelled  by  the  harassing  re3ollection 
that  I  must  go  on  to  Cambridge  and  get  ready  for  an 
examination.  The  Professor  told  me  when  1  waited 
on  him  that  '  I  might  look  over  the  first  sixty  pages  of 
the  Differential  Calculus  by  day  after  to-morrow,  and 
then  he  would  give  me  some  work  to  do. '  Before  the 
day  of  examination,  I  felt  as  if  I  were  breathing  in  an 
atmosphere  of  sines  and  cosines;  but  the  examination 
was  no  harder  than  some  I  have  passed  at  Princeton. 
"  The  students  here  are  just  as  they  are  elsewhere, 
but  the  lines  between  the  classes  are  more  distinctly 
drawn.  They  are  divided  into  reading  men,  boating 
men,  and  fast  men.  The  reading  men  are  strange  crea- 
tures who  generally  spend  from  twelve  to  sixteen  hours 
a  day  with  their  books,  are  very  regular  and  sedate  in 
their  habits,  and  take,  among  other  things,  a  long 
afternoon  walk.  As  their  chief  commodity  is  brain, 
so  that  of  the  other  two  classes  is  muscle  and  money; 


ON    ENGLISH    SOIL.  168 

and  you  see  that  for  a  person  amply  endowed  with  all 
these,  as  your  correspondent,  there  is  a  wide  field  for 
development.  It  is  a  great  grievance  to  be  spoken  of 
as  a  Freshman,  but  I  find  it  best  to  treat  those  who  talk 
thus  with  a  kind  of  silent  pity  or  sarcastic  indifference. 
I  do  not  think,  however,  that  the  term  conveys  such 
opprobrium  here,  as  it  does  at  Princeton.  I  have  not 
yet  met  Mr.  Verdant  Green — in  fact,  I  do  not  think 
he  is  in  College  now. 

"The  students  all  seem  to  be  very  nice  fellows,  but 
they  are  not  so  social  as  at  Princeton. 

"  Cambridge  would  be  a  hard  place  for  some  book- 
sellers and  book-readers.  On  the  first  day  after  I 
arrived  here,  I  went  to  a  book-store  and  asked  for 
Collins'  novel,  'Man  and  Wife,'  and  was  told  that 
novels  were  not  read  at  Cambridge.  I  have  since  come 
to  the  conclusion  that  he  had  better  have  said  that 
'  novels  are  not  sold  at  Cambridge. '  But  it  was  an 
awful  rebuke  to  a  trembling  Freshman,  and  I  almost 
sunk  under  it. 

"We  have  morning  and  evening  chapel  here,  con- 
ducted in  the  high  church  manner.  The  students  all 
have  to  attend  in  white  surplices.  How  would  that  do 
for  Princeton  students? 

"A  good  many  of  the  forms  are  rather  new  to  me, 
too,  but  I  have  not  yet  heard  anything  in  the  least 
unevangelical.  A  good  many  of  the  students  show 
quite  a  spirit  of  reverence  and  devotion,  and — what  is 
a  little  strange — there  is  never  the  least  disorder. 

"I  do  not  think,  however,  that  the  general  standard 
of  religious  feeling  is  very  high ;  and  from  what  I  have 


164  PKYOK  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

seen  so  far,  I  suspect  that  the  state  of  university  morals 
is  about  as  represented  in  Bristed's  'Five  Years  at  an 
English  University.'  Rationalism  is  quite  prevalent 
here,  but  I  have  not  heard  much  of  it  yet. 

1 '  I  will  not  attempt  a  description  of  the  country 
around  here,  as,  probably,  you  have  all  read  a  better 
one  than  I  can  give  you.  If  not,  it  will  be  the  best 
plan  to  come  and  see  for  yourselves ;  only  do  not  come 
in  November,  for  the.  weather  during  that  month  is 
one  continuous  fog  and  drizzle.  Statistics  say  that 
there  are  more  suicides  committed  in  that  month  than 
any  other,  and  I  can  easily  account  for  it  now. 

"I  cannot  say,  Messrs.  Editors,  how  soon  you  may 
receive  another  communication  from  me — perhaps  not 
at  all,  since  I  expect,  before  next  Commencement,  to 
exchange  Cantabrian  for  Nassovian  shades. 

"Ad  interim,  let  me  be  known  to  your  readers  by 
the  unknown  term  of  X." 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

REUNION    AMD    HOME    LIFE. 

"One  small  spot 

Where  my  tired  mind  may  rest  and  call  it  Home! 
There  is  a  magic  in  that  little  word  : 
It  is  a  mystic  circle  that  surrounds 
Comforts  and  virtues  never  known  beyond 
Its  hallowed  limits." 

— Southey. 

jjRYOR  left  Cambridge  and  returned  to  his  fath- 
er's house  at  Brooklyn  in  June,  1871,  and 
for  a  short  season  seems  to  have  given  himself 
up  completely  to  the  quiet  pleasures  of  home,  and  to 
have  shown  a  peculiar  satisfaction  at  being  once  more 
with  his  friends.  To  all  questions  as  to  whether  his 
life  in  England  had  been  a  happy  one,  he  would  simply 
express  pleasure  at  having  been  permitted  to  go.  He 
manifested  little  disposition  to  talk  of  his  life  there, 
and  mentioned  nothing  that  was  especially  enjoyable 
during  his  stay.  He  had,  evidently,  sought  or  found 
little  friendship,  and  felt  no  desire  to  return. 

"For  a  week  or  two  after  his  arrival  at  home,  he 
seemed  to  prefer  complete  relaxation  from  all  reading 
12 


160         PUYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

and  study,  and  found  enjoyment  enough  in  being  with 
his  friends  again.  He  brought  with  him  from  England 
John  Stuart  Mill's  '  Examination  of  Sir  William  Ham- 
ilton's Philosophy,'  Hamilton's  'Aids  to  Faith,'  and 
several  volumes  of  light  reading,  not  one  of  which  he 
ever  opened  after  his  return.  He  was  uniformly  cheer- 
ful during  this  short  period,  enjoying  to  the  full  the 
home  life  after  his  foreign  sojourn,  and  exhibiting  to  a 
degree  unnatural  in  him  a  pleasure  for  society  and 
amusements.  He  attended  almost  every  concert  which 
the  season  afforded,  and  showed  much  love  and  ap- 
preciation of  the  compositions  of  German  masters. 
Schuman's  'Traumerei' — the  dreamings  of  a  genius 
verging  upon  madness  and  death — was  his  especial 
favorite,  and  the  last  music  he  ever  heard." 

On  the  last  Wednesday  in  June,  Pry  or  went  to 
Princeton,  to  attend  the  graduating  exercises  of  the 
Class  of  1871.  He  evidently  expected  a  great  deal  of 
pleasure  from  this  visit,  not  only  because  he  thought  to 
find  the  scene  of  his  happy  college  existence  unchanged, 
but  also  because  he  hoped  to  meet  many  of  his  former 
friends  and  classmates.  He  was  bitterly  disappointed 
in  both.  While  it  is  true  that  Princeton  is  always 
essentially  the  same  to  the  graduate  of  one  or  of  fifty 
years'  standing,  there  is  still  the  absence  of  that  charm 
which  the  presence  of  the  class  with  which  the  Alum- 
nus was  connected  gave  to  the  place,  and  which  made 
it  a  home. 

Pryor  was  also  disappointed  in  the  number  of  the 
classmates  whom  he  met,  and  the  manner  in  which  he 
was  received  by  them.  He  was  literally  athirst  for  the 


JiEUXION    AND    HOME    LIFE.  1  C>T 

kindness  and  sympathy  which  he  had  known  on  this 
loved  spot  only  a  twelvemonth  before.  Absence  had 
strengthened  rather  than  weakened  the  ardor  of  that 
love  which  he  cherished  for  the  friends  of  his  college 
days.  A  full  realization  of  the  intense  pleasure  which 
he  expected  from  this  pilgrimage  to  Princeton  would 
have  sent  him  back  to  his  friends  encouraged  and 
strengthened  for  the  first  rude  shock  with  the  world. 
But  only  a  few  of  his  classmates  came  up  to  take  part 
in  the  annual  festivities;  and  to  all,  but  particularly  to 
his  own  modest,  shrinking  nature,  there  was  a  lack  of 
cordiality  in  the  greetings  that  were  exchanged  that 
chilled  him  and  made  him  regret  the  visit. 

Any  one  who  has  had  the  experience  knows  how 
unsatisfactory  such  reunions  are.  A  fraction  of  a  for- 
ever disorganized  class  come  together,  each  individual 
bent  on  securing  the  greatest  amount  of  happiness 
from  the  renewal  of  his  acquaintance  with  old  friends 
and  places.  In  the  hurry  and  confusion  of  the  hour, 
he  sees — perhaps  oftener  fails  to  see — the  face  of  a 
classmate,  but  there  is  only  time  at  the  most  for  a 
hurried  greeting  and  a  hasty  grasp  of  the  hand  ;  then 
each  is  lost  to  the  other  again,  it  may  be  for  years  and 
it  may  be  forever.  But  this  was  Pry  or 's  first  reunion, 
and  he  had  not  yet  learned  what  to  expect  from  men 
who  had  already  become  interested  in  the  friends  of 
their  world  life.  Some  of  those  whom  he  had  loved 
most  he  was  debarred  from  seeing  at  all,  and  those, 
whom  he  did  meet  seemed 

"  All  unlike  the  friends  of  other  days  !  " 


168         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

This  was  an  unexpected  revelation,  and  he  turned 
his  back  upon  Princeton  with  great  sadness  at  heart, 
reflecting,  "  No  one  cares  for  me  :  I  am  lost  to  my 
friends,  and  the  place  which  I  once  filled  in  their  hearts 
is  better  occupied  by  others."  And  so  he  went  back 
to  his  home  and  to  the  unsympathetic  world,  to  be 
more  than  ever  alone.  The  thoughts  woven  from 
the  experience  of  those  days  of  disappointment  became 
to  him,  like  Pascal's  "iron  girdle,  full  of  steel  thorns," 
a  fearful  reminder  of  the  emptiness  of  the  world's  best 
friendships.  And  henceforth  he  seemed  "to  seek  no 
satisfaction  on  earth,  to  hope  for  nothing  from  men, 
and  to  find  his  good  in  God  alone. "  What  Leigh  Hunt 
wrote  of  the  unfortunate  Shelley  might  with  equal  pro- 
priety be  said  of  him: — "He  was  like  a  spirit  that 
had  darted  out  of  its  orb  and  found  itself  in  another 
world.  It  seemed  as  if  his  spirit,  not  constituted  like 
the  rest  of  the  world,  to  obtain  their  sympathy,  yet 
gifted  with  a  double  portion  of  love  for  all  living  things, 
had  been  found  dead,  its  wings  stiffened,  its  warm 
heart  cold,  the  relics  of  misunderstood  nature  slain  by 
the  ungenial  elements. 

*  The  love  he  sent  forth  void  returned, 
The  fame  that  crowned  him  scorched  and  burned; 
Burning,  yet  cold  and  drear  and  lone, 
A  lire-mount  in  a  frozen  zone!'  " 

Could  Pryor,  at  this  critical  period,  have  found  a 
friend  capable  of  receiving  his  confidence,  and  satisfy- 
ing his  keen  craving  for  the  sympathy  of  a  kindred 
soul,  his  career  might  have  been  different.  As  it  was, 
his  "deep  and  high  heart"  sought  and  found  inter- 


REUNION    AND    HOME    LIFE.  169 

course  with  great  minds  through  their  writings.  These 
furnished  his  highest  enjoyment.  Their  thoughts  came 
to  him  as  letters  from  home  and  kindred  to  one  ban- 
ished from  both,  and  wandering  in  strange  lands. 
During  the  summer,  he  read  Leckey's  " Rationalism  in 
Europe"  and  "European  Morals";  also  Dr.  McCosh's 
work  on  i  '  Positivism. "  The  first  two  he  and  his  father 
read  together  and  often  discussed.  He  was  greatly 
interested  in  them,  but  by  no  means  agreed  with  many 
of  the  author's  views,  and  often  disputed  the  soundness 
of  his  logic. 

"  We  noticed  in  him  at  this  time,"  writes  his  sister, 
"a  growing  taste  for  German  literature,  and  an  unceas- 
ing admiration  for  the  German  mind.  He  had  long 
considered  Carlyle  the  greatest  of  living  English  writ- 
ers. A  day  seldom  passed  without  his  taking  up 
i Sartor  Resartus'  or  a  volume  of  his  i Essays,'  and 
reading  aloud  passages  that  particularly  pleased  him. 
Through  the  German  literature  he  became  introduced 
to  the  Germans  themselves,  and  soon  found  how  con- 
genial to  his  own  were  their  habits  of  thinking  and 
reasoning.  Goethe's  l Faust'  and  'Wilhelm  Meister' 
were  the  last  books  in  which  he  displayed  any  interest. 
I  always,  however,  observed  with  wonder  that,  though 
enthusiastic  in  his  devotion  to  his  favorite  authors,  he 
was  never  blind  to  their  faults.  He  discerned  more 
clearly  than  any  one  I  ever  knew  the  evil  as  well  as 
the  good,  even  in  his  best-loved  books.  No  plausi- 
bility of  argument  or  brilliancy  of  style  could  disguise 
from  him  imsoundness  of  reasoning ;  no  coruscations 
of  genius  deceive  him  if  the  steady  light  of  truth  were 
wanting. 


170  PRYOR  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

"  Anything  like  mannerism  annoyed  him.  '  I  believe 
you  love  your  favorite  authors  because  of  their  peculi- 
arities,' he  once  said  to  one  less  discriminating  than 
himself ;  '  I  always  in  spite  of  them. '  He  liked  even 
Carlyle  best  when  he  displayed  fewest  Carlyleisms. " 
*  -K-  •*  *  •*  •* 

During  this  summer  and  the  early  autumn,  Pryor, 
for  the  first  time  in  many  years,  lived  continuously 
under  his  father's  roof.  We  have  seen  how  his  early 
life  was  spent  among  his  relatives,  with  only  occasional 
contact  with  his  parents  ;  and  how  later  he  was  much 
at  school,  afterwards  at  college,  and  last  of  all  abroad. 
He  was  now  restored  to  the  companionship  of  that  sis- 
ter who  remembers  with  inexpressible  pleasure  the 
delightful  intercourse  of  those  few  brief  months  dur- 
ing which  they  were  together  again.  His  home  was 
always  eminently  cheerful.  Since  the  settlement  of 
the  family  at  the  North,  no  cloud  had  come  over  the 
household  to  darken  it,  or  to  sadden  the  hearts  of  the 
little  circle  of  exiles.  No  cloud  could  ever  linger  long 
in  such  an  atmosphere.  Father  and  mother,  brothers 
and  sisters,  vied  with  each  other  in  making  home  a  de- 
light and  life  a  pleasure.  They  possessed  among  them- 
selves the  possibilities  of  happiness,  but  the  host  of 
friends  which  they  gathered  about  them  never  made  it 
necessary  to  rely  solely  upon  themselves. 

Said  one  who  was  the  recipient  of  their  kind  offices 
of  hospitality:  "I  never  saw  a  more  cheerful  circle 
of  hearts  nestling  in  a  lovelier  home.  During  the 
four  or  five  days  that  I  spent  under  their  roof  I  was 
the  object  of  a  thousand  attentions,  without  feeling 


REUNION    AND    HOME    LIFE.  171 

any  of  that  embarrassment  which  so  often  results 
from  over-notice.  Parents,  children,  and  even  servants 
seemed  to  catch  the  general  spirit  and  contributed  each 
a  share  to  the  fund  of  enjoyment  and  delight  that  it 
was  my  distinguished  privilege  to  experience.  Hap- 
pier and  brighter  countenances  seldom  gather  about 
the  family  board,  than  those  with  which  I  was  there 
daily  surrounded.  Each  meal  furnished  mental  ali- 
ment as  well  as  bodily  refreshment.  Food  was  well 
chatted,  and  an  easy  flow  of  conversation  that  was  in- 
teresting to  all  was  well  and  constantly  sustained.  Of 
the  still  more  delightful  enjoyments  of  the  parlor, 
drawing-room,  and  library,  I  can  give  no  adequate  de- 
scription. The  memory  of  the  hours  that  flew,  mark 
those  days  as  among  the  happiest  of  my  life.  Surely 
there  could  be  no  sad  hearts  in  the  little  company  as  I 
saw  it  and  was  entertained  by  it. " 

It  is  a  matter  of  wonder  and  surprise  that  this  period 
of  home-life  did  not  continue  to  be  one  of  glad  enjoy- 
ment. We  cannot  help  thinking  that  he  must  have 
per  force  appropriated  at  least  a  little  of  the  happiness 
that  was  afforded  him  in  the  social  intercourse  with 
his  family  and  their  friends.  It  is  true  that  he  did 
devote  himself  with  more  zest  than  ever  before  in  his 
life  to  the  lighter  accomplishments.  His  increasing 
fondness  for  music  has  already  been  adverted  to.  To 
gratify  this  taste  he  impressed  all  the  musicians  of  the 
family  into  his  service,  and  would  listen  for  hours  to 
the  rendition  of  the  best  works  of  musical  art.  He 
seemed  absorbed  and  happy  only  when  in  an  atmos- 
phere that  was  vibrating  with  waves  of  harmony. 


172         PRYOK:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

What  the  pious  never  say  except  on  their  knees,  in 
communion  with  God,  is  often  spoken  in  the  palpitat- 
ing utterances  of  music — in  the  language  of  tones — 
those  mysteries  of  emotion,  which  man  is  permitted  to 
understand  without  words,  because  no  words  can  utter 
them.  Pryor  was  no  musician,  but  he  had  learned  to 
appreciate  the  noblest  expressions  of  tone  language, 
and  he  began  to  live  on  music — the  moody  food  of 
the  imagination.  The  threefold  characteristic  of 
genius  in  affection  is  the  richness,  the  intensity,  and 
the  tenacity  of  the  emotions.  The  emotions  of  a 
meagre  nature  are  comparatively  evanescent.  What- 
ever entered  Pryor's  heart  became  a  part  of  his  being, 
throbbed  with  his  life-blood,  and  stayed  as  a  fixed 
part  of  his  life.  His  love  for  music  was  one  of  this 
description.  It  never  left  him  again,  but  remained  as 
a  sweet  and  pure  pleasure  to  the  end  of  his  life. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

LAW    STUDIES. 

"  I  have  touch'd  the  highest  point  of  all  my  greatness; 
And  from  that  full  meridian  of  my  glory 
I  haste  now  to  my  setting:    I  shall  fall 
Like  a  bright  exhalation  in  the  evening, 
And  no  man  see  me  more." 

— Shakespeare. 

now  approach  the  record  of  a  great  mental 
)  conflict.  The  summer  was  rapidly  passing 
away,  and  the  time  was  at  hand  when  Pryor 
should  begin  the  struggle  of  life  in  some  chosen  line 
of  duty.  Two  paths  were  open  to  him,  two  profes- 
sions— Law  and  Theology — in  either  of  which  he  might 
hope  to  act  well  his  part  in  life.  His  own  choice,  it 
was  plain,  was  Theology;  that  of  most  his  friends,  the 
Law. 

u  I  am  as  resolved  as  ever,"  he  said  in  writing  to  a 
friend  at  Princeton,  "to  go  through  the  seminary,  and 
expect  to  be  back  next  year.  And  if  not,  I  fully  ex- 
pect to  study  at  some  time  for  the  ministry.  If  I  find 
myself  unfit  for  a  pastor,  I  wish  to  be  a  professor  in 
some  college  or  seminary,  for  which  that  would  be  the 


174  PRYOR  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

best  preparation.  I  have  all  along  wished  to  go  to  the 
seminary,  but  I  am  much  afraid  that  it  is  a  sudden  im- 
pulse that  will  not  stand  any  lengthened  trial.  I  trust 
that  God  will  soon  guide  me  to  the  proper  decision. " 

Feeling  the  call  to  the  sacred  office  to  be  a  matter  of 
the  highest  importance,  he  considered  it  with  a  serious 
and  prayerful  spirit.  He  seems  to  have  been  solicitous 
to  avoid  the  doom  of  Uzziah,  by  an  unhallowed  touch- 
ing of  the  ark ;  and  yet  all  the  time  felt  so  distinctly 
called  to  the  work,  that  he  could  not  excuse  himself 
from  giving  that  call  a  fair  hearing.  From  the  mo- 
ment that  he  gave  himself  to  Christ,  he  seemed  to  re- 
nounce all  personal  and  worldly  ambition.  He  never 
spoke  of  his  future  life  except  to  hope  that  God  would 
use  it  for  himself.  His  greatest,  most  frequently  ex- 
pressed, hope  was  to  be  holy.  When  first  asked  if  he  had 
chosen  a  profession,  his  simple  reply  was  :  u  I  want  to 
be  a  minister,  if  I  can  be  good  enough.  I  don't  think 
anything  else  is  worth  living  for."  Cherishing  the 
most  exalted  ideas  of  the  Christian  ministry,  he  hes- 
itated to  accept  its  responsibilities,  and  permitted  his 
mind  to  dwell  on  the  subject  and  view  it  with  calm- 
ness. After  many  days  spent  in  careful  deliberation 
and  earnest  prayer,  he  determined  to  wait  for  a  fuller 
development  of  his  desire  to  enter  the  ministry,  and 
get  clearer  indications  of  a  call  to  that  office.  ' '  I  will 
wait,"  said  he,  "another  year;  and  if  at  the  end  of 
that  time  I  still  feel  it  to  be  my  duty  to  become  a  min- 
ister, I  will  consider  my  life-work  decided,  and  en- 
deavor to  fulfil  my  mission  as  best  I  can." 

But  even  this  year  was  not  to  be  spent  in  idle  wait- 


LAW    STUDIES.  175 

ing:  he  might  choose  the  law  at  the  end  of  this  period 
of  probation  ;  therefore  he  resolved  to  pursue  that 
study  in  the  interim.  From  this  time  onward  his  days 
were  spent  in  New  York,  the  time  being  divided  be- 
tween the  Columbia  Law  School  and  his  father's  law 
office.  At  six  in  the  evening  he  would  return  to  his 
home  in  Brooklyn,  and  after  dinner,  read,  visit  or 
converse  until  bed-time. 

His  career  at  the  law  school  is  similar  in  its  record 
with  all  his  previous  undertakings.  He  could  no  more 
consent  to  be  mediocre  here  than  at  school  or  college, 
even  though  it  might  not  be  his  lot  to  complete  the 
course  of  study  thus  commenced.  One  who  was  asso- 
ciated with  him  at  this  time,  writes  as  follows  :  "  He 
comprehended  legal  principles  readily,  and  where  others 
encountered  difficulties  he  found  none  whatever.  He 
seemed  to  understand  at  once  not  merely  the  refined 
distinctions  of  law,  but  the  relations  of  one  principle 
to  another ;  and  so  far  as  he  went,  to  take  in  the  science 
in  all  its  proportions.  He  manifested  not  merely  a 
highly  discriminating  mind,  but  a  generalizing  and 
philosophical  one.  His  mind  was  calm,  clear,  and 
self -poised,  and  his  judgment  sound.  He  had  also  in 
a  high  degree  the  judicial  capacity,  and  would  have 
made  an  able  judge.  His  faculties,  naturally  superior, 
had  evidently  been  improved  by  thorough  education. 
He  thus  came  to  the  study  of  the  law  with  a  mind  re- 
markably well  disciplined,  as  well  as  with  a  rare  literary 
culture.  His  reading,  also,  seemed  to  have  been  sys- 
tematic and  well  chosen,  so  that  he  was  furnished  both 
with  thoughts  on  the  most  important  subjects  and 
with  valuable  information." 


1  76  PRYOR  I    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

The  sessions  of  the  law  school  left  ample  leisure  for 
collateral  reading,  attendance  at  the  city  courts,  and 
attention  to  office  duties.  To  these  Pryor  severally 
devoted  himself,  with  a  zeal  that  was  in  the  highest  de- 
gree commendable.  He  was  a  diligent  reader,  attended 
the  sessions  of  the  court,  where  he  watched,  listened, 
and  took  notes,  using  the  latter  in  connection  with 
readings  on  kindred  subjects  ;  and  also  dispatched  the 
office  business  devolving  upon  him,  with  a  scrupulous 
care  that  was  alike  observable  in  things  small  and 
great.  Of  course,  all  this  was  not  accomplished  with- 
out reducing  his  labors  to  a  perfect  system,  and  he 
could  not  adhere  strictly  to  this  system  without  prac- 
ticing the  severest  self-denial. 

About  this  time  he  was  seized  with  an  uncontrolla- 
ble desire  to  become  self-supporting,  supposing  that 
he  was  a  burden  to  his  parents.  His  whole  previous 
life  had  been  characterized  by  a  spirit  of  exertion  and 
independence.  He  grasped  with  avidity  everything 
which  would  enable  him  to  be  less  of  a  burden  to 
others.  His  wants  were  few  and  easily  supplied ;  and 
we  could  furnish  evidence  of  economy — thougli  he 
never  was  stingy — which  would  excite  surprise.  Pos- 
sessed of  a  generous  and  self-denying  spirit,  he  nobly 
sacrificed  everything  which  it  was  possible  for  him  to 
give  up,  so  that  the  expenses  of  his  education  might 
affect  as  little  as  possible  the  other  members  of  the 
family.  But  now  this  desire  to  relieve  others  became 
a  strong  passion,  causing  him  great  mental  anxiety  and 
disquietude.  It  was  in  vain  that  the  tale  of  his  labors 
and  services  was  placed  to  his  account.  In  vain  that 


LAW    STUDIES.  177 

he  was  assured  of  more  than  cancelling  his  indebted- 
ness by  the  faithful  discharge  of  his  duty  as  a  loving 
son,  to  say  nothing  of  the  material  aid  which  he  ren- 
dered his  father  in  the  office.  He  felt  that  he  must  do 
something  for  himself. 

This  condition  of  Pryor's  mind  was  the  source  of 
great  anxiety  to  his  parents,  who  observed  this  grow- 
ing tendency  to  excessive  irritability  with  great  pain. 
More  than  solicitous  for  their  son's  highest  happiness, 
they  saw  no  way  out  of  the  difficulty — no  means  of  re- 
moving the  incubus  that  was  crushing  their  boy  and 
making  his  life  miserable.  His  time  seemed  already 
too  thoroughly  occupied  to  entertain  the  idea  of  his 
assuming  any  additional  labor  ;  and  yet  this  seemed  the 
only  way  out  of  the  difficulty,  since  he  was  as  loath  to 
forsake  any  of  his  duties  as  he  was  anxious  to  help 
himself. 

Just  at  this  time,  a  gentleman  of  Brooklyn  proposed 
to  General  Pryor  to  engage  the  services  of  his  son 
in  preparing  one  or  two  pupils  for  college.  It 
seemed  as  though  Providence  was  thus  opening  a 
way  to  the  adjustment  of  the  difficulty ;  and  to  secure 
his  son's  happiness  he  accepted  the  offer,  and  Pryor 
entered  upon  the  discharge  of  his  new  duties  as 
tutor,  without  materially  changing  his  former  mode 
of  life,  or  diminishing  its  various  tasks.  Of  these  new 
relations  into  which  he  entered,  the  nature  of  his 
duties,  and  the  manner  in  which  they  were  discharged, 
it  is  unnecessary  for  us  to  speak.  Under  almost  any 
other  circumstances,  this  additional  labor  must  have 
been  highly  beneficial.  The  family  was  one  of  the 


178         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

greatest  respectability,  all  its  associations  eminently 
pleasant,  and  the  task  of  teaching  would  have  been  a 
delightful  one  to  Pryor,  if  it  had  fallen  to  his  lot  one 
year  earlier  in  life.  But  the  coveted  peace  of  mind 
came  not,  and  it  soon  became  evident  that  this  abnor- 
mal restlessness  was  to  be  traced  to  a  deeper  cause. 
The  most  trivial  annoyances  affected  him  inordinately, 
and  were  magnified  into  great  troubles,  which  unsettled 
him  and  made  him  miserable  for  whole  days  together. 
He  also  became  keenly  sensitive  to  the  wickedness 
which  he  saw  in  the  world  around  him.  It  was  the  time 
when  the  whole  nation  was  standing  aghast  at  the  reve- 
lation of  the  corruption  and  fraud  that  existed  among 
the  officials  in  the  city  of  New  York.  To  Pryor,  the 
story  of  theft  and  deceit  came  with  a  peculiar  force.  A 
morbid  depreciation  of  the  worth  of  all  worldly  aims 
gradually  possessed  him.  He  became  extremely  un- 
happy. His  pure  mind  saw  disproportion,  misery,  and 
frightful  mystery  everywhere.  Born  with  delicate  sen- 
sibilities and  irritable  nerves,  developing  a  precocious 
sensitiveness,  his  early  reading  joined  with  his  native 
bent  to  blend  in  his  soul  the  heroic  ideality  of  Rome  and 
Sparta  with  the  poetic  ideality  of  chivalry  and  truth. 
In  his  first  contact  with  the  world,  wickedness  and 
crime  so  disfigured  and  marred  the  reality,  that  lie 
reacted  from  his  ideas  of  absolute  good  and  human 
perfectibility  into  a  wretched  despondency.  Had 
he  turned  from  the  special  examples  of  wrong  to 
the  general  laws  of  right,  to  the  deep,  steady,  moral 
sanctions  and  tendencies  in  the  nature  of  things  and 
in  the  nature  of  man,  he  might  still  have  been  happy. 


LAW    STUDIES.  179 

But  successive  developments  and  unveilings  of  crime 
kept  up  a  vibrating  action  between  his  soul's  high 
ideal  and  the  real  condition  of  men  and  things  as 
gradually  revealed  to  him. 

Such  a  state  of  things  could  not  but  be  noticed  by 
his  family,  but  the  importance  which  is  attached  to 
them  now  was  not  realized  to  the  same  extent  then. 
The  clouds  that  came  over  that  young  life  and  dark- 
ened it  are  remembered,  but  they  seemed  not  then  to 
be  heavy  with  the  blasting  storm  that  came  out  of  their 
bosoms.  The  mind  dwells  with  sadness  upon  the 
history  of  those  last  sorrowful  autumn  days.  Nature 
was  putting  on  gorgeous  apparel  in  which  to  die. 
Flowers  were  fading  and  leaves  falling.  That  sad 
influence  which  comes  with  the  dying  days  of  fall,  and 
affects  the  most  cheerful  dispositions,  must  also  have 
had  a  depressing  effect  upon  Pry  or 's  already  drooping 
spirit.  "He  lost  all  taste  for  reading,  became  excit- 
able and  restless,  and  could  not  bear  to  be  left  alone. 
He  would  give  way  to  days  of  darkness,  during  which 
he  sought  quiet,  seldom  speaking,  and  becoming  ex- 
ceedingly nervous  if  conversation  was  forced  upon 
him.  These  changes  took  place  so  gradually,  and 
were  interspersed  with  transient  gleams  of  such  sun- 
shine, that  no  one  realized  the  truth.  In  the  light  of 
the  present  the  past  is  always  clear,  and  all  is  plainly 
seen  now  that  was  hidden  then." 

Various  expedients  were  resorted  to,  with  the  im- 
perfect understanding  of  his  mental  condition,  to 
excite  in  him  a  fresh  interest  in  the  duties  and  pleas- 
ures of  life.  He  lent  himself  a  willing  subject  to  these 


180         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

devices  of  loving  hearts,  but  it  was  only  a  passive 
obedience,  springing  from  principles  too  firmly  fixed 
even  for  temporary  derangement.  Automaton-like, 
he  moved  in  prepared  grooves,  seeking  not  his  own 
pleasure,  and  finding  no  new  interest  in  the  things 
offered  to  him ;  or  if  he  did,  sinking  rapidly  back  into 
listlessness  and  lethargy.  Among  other  things,  a  con- 
nection with  "  The  Hamilton  Literary  Association,"  an 
organization  composed  of  the  literati  of  Brooklyn,  was 
sought  and  obtained  for  him.  Contact  with  gentle- 
men of  high  literary  tastes  and  culture,  it  was  thought, 
would  revive  in  him  some  of  his  former  enthusiasm. 
The  plan  appeared  to  succeed.  He  attended  the  meet- 
ings of  the  society,  evidently  deriving  much  pleasure 
from  them,  and  was  at  length  chosen  to  take  part  in  a 
debate.  He  studied  the  question  with  much  of  his 
former  zest  and  thoroughness,  and  produced  an  argu- 
ment which  was  unanswerable.  But,  before  the  time 
came  for  its  delivery,  his  good  genius  seems  to  have 
fled  again  ;  and  to  the  surprise  of  every  one,  he  de- 
stroyed his  paper  and  absented  himself  from  the 
meeting  of  the  Association. 

Pryor  was  not  blind  to  his  own  condition.  He  saw, 
and  strove  heroically  to  conquer  his  misery,  but  there 
was  fatal  error  in  his  methods.  He  needed  spiritual 
rest,  that  his  organism  might  accumulate  force ;  but 
he  kept  up  an  incessant  spiritual  activity,  an  uninter- 
rupted waste.  A  wearing  intellectual  anxiety  usurped 
the  place  of  the  leisurely  and  complacent  assimilation 
of  intellectual  nourishment  that  he  needed.  Instead 
of  sedulously  cultivating  every  means  of  avoiding 


LAW    STUDIES.  181 

introspection  and  critical  thought,  to  give  room  for 
repose  and  recuperation,  the  worse  he  suffered  the 
more  he  analyzed  and  criticised,  still  adding  to  the 
already  excessive  exhaustion.  If  he  could  have  made 
his  transitions  of  thought  outward  and  upward,  his 
ideas  would  have  reacted  wholesomely  on  his  mind, 
radiating  a  tonic  refreshment  through  the  nervous 
system.  But  as  the  last  direction  of  his  prevailing 
modes  of  mental  association  was  inward  and  downward, 
returning  from  the  ideal  to  the  actual,  and  stopping  at 
last  on  defects  and  longings,  his  ideas  were  constantly 
shedding  back  irritating  and  melancholy  influences  on 
the  mind. 
13 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

LOST  AND  FOUND. 

"  I  have  no  will  to  wander  forth  of  doors, 
Yet  something  drives  me  forth." 

— Julius  Cwsar,  Act  III,  Scene  3rd. 

plYOH'S  disease,  for  such  we  may  term  it,  man- 
ifested itself  in  an  apparent  dissatisfaction  and 
restlessness.  These  were  its  chief  symptoms. 
During  the  early  autumn  days  he  suffered  from  con- 
tinuous depression  of  spirits — "his  deportment  was 
often  peculiarly  sad,  and  his  mind  seemed  to  lack  its 
accustomed  steadiness  and  brilliancy.  These  and 
many  other  indications  which  nature  was  giving  of  an 
overworked  constitution,  were  interpreted  as  the 
merely  temporary  effects  of  ill-health,  resulting  from 
unremitting  study  and  unnecessary  anxiety  with  re- 
gard to  future  success."  He  still  continued  in  the 
faithful  discharge  of  all  his  duties,  however,  and  as 
these  made  it  necessary  for  him  to  be  away  from  home 
much  of  the  time,  many  things  escaped  notice  which 
must  otherwise  have  been  observed  and  attended  to. 
It  must  also  be  remembered  that  at  this  time  another 


184  PKYOR  I    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

member  of  the  family  was  so  ill  as  to  require  the  closest 
attention  from  those  whose  fond  anxiety  would,  under 
any  other  circumstances,  have  detected  the  symptoms 
of  mental  trouble  to  which  we  have  alluded. 

Saturday,  October  14th,  1871, was  a  half-holiday  with 
Pry  or,  and  certainly  no  one  ever  enjoyed  respite  from 
labor  more  than  he  appeared  to  011  that  day.  As  far 
as  we  can  judge,  Saturday  evening  was  one  of  the 
happiest  of  his  life.  His  gay  flow  of  spirits  was  ex- 
traordinary, and  he  was  thoroughly  master  of  himself 
for  a  few  hours.  Before  retiring  he  asked  his  mother 
to  play  for  him,  and  promptly  acceding  to  this  last 
request  he  ever  made,  she  immediately  seated  herself 
at  the  piano,  and  performed  the  selections  which  she 
knew  he  loved  best.  For  almost  two  hours  she  con- 
tinued to  play,  without  any  sign  of  weariness  in  her 
son.  At  last  he  came  to  the  instrument,  reproaching 
himself  for  exacting  so  much  from  her,  and  expressing 
the  most  intense  pleasure,  hastily  retired. 

The  following  morning,  Pry  or  did  not  make  his  ap- 
pearance until  much  later  than  usual,  and  on  coining 
down  stairs,  was  evidently  quite  ill,  and  complained 
of  feeling  chilly.  He  kept  the  house  during  the  day, 
but  towards  evening  he  was  completely  himself  again. 
All  the  solicitude  which  was  felt  by  those  around  him 
was  wholly  removed  by  his  improvement,  and  at 
dinner  the  indisposition  of  the  morning  was  almost 
entirely  forgotten.  At  this  meal,  the  last  one  of 
which  he  ever  partook  under  his  father's  roof,  his 
manner  was  such  as  to  allay  any  feelings  of  anxiety 
which  may  have  been  felt  for  him.  He  ate  heartily, 


LOST    AND    FOUND.  185 

and  entered  with  spirit  into  conversation  that  was 
carried  on  during  the  meal.  After  dinner,  he  became 
restless  and  uneasy  again,  but  true  to  his  appoint- 
ments, accompanied  a  friend  to  church,  and  returned 
home  at  nine  o'clock.  After  some  moments  spent  in 
reading,  he  went  into  the  hall,  put  on  his  coat  and  hat, 
and  returning  to  the  library,  addressed  his  mother  by 
a  pet  name,  and  telling  her  that  he  felt  warm,  and 
would  take  a  walk  to  cool  off,  left  the  room  and  went 
out  of  the  house.  This  act  was  scarcely  observed -by 
his  mother.  There  was  nothing  remarkable  about  his 
going  out  for  a  walk — he  had  often  done  the  same 
thing,  sometimes  in  company  with  his  father,  oftener 
alone.  She  quietly  resumed  her  reading,  and  gave 
herself  no  anxiety.  Hours  passed  by  and  he  returned 
not.  Late  in  the  night  his  father  came  in  from  visit- 
ing a  friend,  and  finding  his  son  absent,  bade  the 
others  retire,  and  went  out  into  the  streets  again, 
hoping  to  meet  him.  He  retraced  his  steps  expecting 
to  find  him  at  home.  But  going  to  his  room  he  found 
it  still  empty,  and  descended  to  the  library  to  wait. 
Far  into  the  night  extended  the  lonely  vigil,  and  his 
child  was  still  absent.  Every  step  on  the  pavement 
promised  to  end  his  watch,  but  departing  footsteps 
carried  hope  away  in  their  dying  sounds.  The  last 
step  died  out — and  nothing  broke  the  stillness,  save 
the  moaning  of  the  night  winds  around  the  eaves. 

He  was  alarmed  now,  and  called  his  wife  to  share  his 
watch,  and  the  gray  dawn  of  a  new  day  found  them 
still  waiting.  In  vain  did  each  suggest  reasons  for 
his  absence  to  comfort  the  other.  Every  moment  in- 


186  PRYOR :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

creased  their  anxiety,  and  their  hearts  grew  sick  by 
"hope  deferred."  The  great  city  became  noisy  with 
the  life  and  toil  of  a  new  day  and  a  new  week,  and 
still  no  tidings  of  the  lost  son.  At  an  early  hour  the 
news  of  his  disappearance  was  circulated,  and  friends 
and  neighbors  joined  in  the  search.  The  police 
authorities  were  immediately  notified,  and  descriptions 
of  the  missing  sent  to  every  part  of  the  country.  But 
days  and  nights  passed,  and  still  no  solution  of  the 
mystery.  Much  perplexity  was  experienced  as  to 
where  and  how  to  search.  Nothing  that  Pryor  had 
said,  written,  or  done  afforded  any  clue.  All  efforts  to 
find  him  failed,  detectives  were  baffled,  and  rewards 
were  offered  in  vain.  Once,  indeed,  hopes  were  enter- 
tained of  his  having  been  fouud.  A  young  man 
answering  to  his  description  was  seen  in  Norwalk, 
Connecticut ;  but  even  this  proved  a  false  alarm. 

In  Princeton  the  report  of  Pryor's  absence  caused 
a  profound  sensation  among  his  friends.  Many  earnest 
prayers  were  offered  for  his  speedy  restoration  to  his 
parents,  and  many  hearts  grew  sad  as  the  days  passed 
by  without  terminating  their  suspense.  On  Sunday 
special  prayer  was  again  made  that  the  efforts  put  forth 
for  his  recovery  might  be  successful. 

On  Monday  morning,  October  23rd,  a  body  was 
found  floating  in  East  River,  which  proved  to  be 
Pryor's.  His  coat,  watch,  and  purse  were  missing, 
but  no  marks  of  violence  were  found  on  his  person. 
The  theory  of  his  death  founded  on  subsequent  inves- 
tigation, and  commonly  accepted  as  the  true  one,  is, 
"  that  he  was  suffering  from  congestion  of  the  brain  ; 


LOST    AND    FOUND.  187 

that  this  brought  on  temporary  derangement  of  his 
reason,  and  that  he  walked  off  the  dock  at  Wall  Street 
Ferry  within  five  minutes  after  he  left  home."  But 
whether  in  a  sudden  fit  of  insanity  he  cast  himself 
into  the  river,  or  whether  in  his  lonely  walk  he  perished 
by  the  hand  of  another,  must  ever  remain  a  matter  of 
conjecture.  "All  we  know  is,  that  he  went  in  and 
out  among  his  family,  gentle,  lovely,  sad  in  his  de- 
meanor, and  that  they  lost  him  on  that  Sunday  night ; 
that  they  exhausted  human  skill  and  energy  in  search- 
ing for  him;  that  the  waves  brought  him  to  them, 
pure  and  white,  the  very  perfection  of  manly  beauty  • 
Whatever  may  have  been  the  cause  of  his  death,  there 
was  nothing  in  any  of  the  various  circumstances  of  his 
life  from  which  he  could  possibly  have  desired  to 
separate  himself." 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

BURIAL. 

"  Fast  as  tlie  rolling  seasons  bring 

The  hour  of  Fate  to  those  we  love, 
Each  pearl  that  leaves  the  broken  string 

Is  set  in  Friendship's  crown  above; 
As  narrower  grows  the  earthly  chain, 

The  circle  widens  in  the  sky; 
These  are  our  treasures  that  remain, 

But  those  are  stars  that  beam  on  high!" 

JARLY  on  the  morning  of  Tuesday  it  was  an- 
nounced that  Pryor's  remains  would  be  carried 
to  Princeton  for  burial.  This  arrangement 
gave  peculiar  pleasure  and  satisfaction  to  the  residents 
of  that  place,  and  measures  were  taken  for  a  general 
participation  in  the  funeral  exercises.  The  College 
and  Theological  Seminary  united  in  paying  honor  to 
the  memory  of  the  departed.  At  quarter  past  two 
o'clock  the  College  bell  began  to  toll,  and  the  class- 
mates of  the  deceased  who  were  in  Princeton,  together 
with  the  College  Faculty  and  students,  assembled  in 
the  Chapel.  When  all  were  collected,  a  line  was 
formed,  the  Class  of  Seventy  walking  first,  followed  by 


190         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

the  officers  of  the  College,  and  the  classes  in  the  order 
of  their  seniority.  The  procession  proceeded  to  the 
depot,  where  it  was  met  by  the  students  from  the 
Seminary,  and  the  two  lines  were  united. 

In  a  few  minutes  the  train  arrived,  bearing  its  prec- 
ious freight.  The  casket  containing  the  remains 
was  transferred  from  the  car  to  the  hearse  by  class- 
mates who  had  been  selected  to  act  as  pall-bearers. 
As  they  were  slowly  borne  along  towards  the  church, 
the  bells  tolled  minute  strokes. 

The  exercises  were  held  in  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church.  The  organ  pealed  out  its  deep  and  solemn 
tones  as  the  procession  entered  the  building.  The 
coffin,  blossoming  all  over  with  the  rarest  flowers,  was 
placed  on  the  platform  under  the  pulpit,  where  only  a 
little  more  than  a  year  before  its  occupant  stood, 
laden  with  honors,  and  bright  with  the  flush  of  vigor- 
ous youth,  representing  his  class  in  the  first  position 
of  distinction.  Dr.  Vandyke,  of  Brooklyn,  Dr.  Mac- 
donald,  the  Pastor  of  the  Church,  and  Dr.  McCosh, 
were  in  the  pulpit.  When  the  immense  audience 
which  crowded  the  church  were  composed,  the  College 
choir  chanted  the  dirge  : 

"  Hark  to  the  solemn  bell, 
Mournfully  pealing!" 

The  singing  finished,  Dr.  Vandyke,  in  a  voice  trem- 
bling with  an  emotion  which  would  not  be  controlled, 
spoke  partly  as  follows  : 

"  There  seems  to  be  an  eminent  propriety  in  holding 
these  funeral  solemnities  at  Princeton.  I  believe  that 


BURIAL.  191 

if  the  dead  could  speak  he  would  approve  the  choosing 
of  his  grave  in  this  classic  ground. 

"  He  was  a  son  of  Princeton.  Here  he  spent  the 
best  and  the  happiest  years  of  his  short  life.  Here  he 
achieved  literary  distinction.  Here  he  won  the  con- 
fidence and  affection  of  his  associates.  Here  he  gave 
to  the  world  those  bright  promises  of  eminence  in  the 
future,  which,  alas !  must  all  be  buried  to-day  in  his 
grave. 

"  And  now,  professors  and  students,  we  have  brought 
these  mortal  remains  to  you — the  teachers  whom  he 
loved,  and  the  companions  with  whom  he  took  sweet 
counsel — in  the  confidence  that  you  will  lovingly  and 
tenderly  lay  them  with  the  honored  dead  of  his  Alma 
Mater. 

"  Painful  as  the  subject  is,  the  necessity  is  laid  upon 
me  to  speak  of  the  manner  of  his  death.  You  are  all 
aware  that  after  a  diligent  and  fruitless  search  for  seven 
days,  the  mystery  of  his  sudden  disappearance  from 
home  was  at  last  solved,  by  finding  his  body  in  the 
East  River,  where  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  he 
drowned  himself.  But  it  is  my  sweet  privilege  to  say 
to  you,  what  has  comforted  my  own  soul,  and  what 
has  been  an  unspeakable  consolation  to  those  whose 
hearts  are  pierced  with  a  grief  that  only  God  knows — 
that  we  ought  not  to  regard  his  death  as  suicide.  He 
did  not  rush  wilfully,  madly,  into  the  presence  of  his 
Maker,  with  the  guilt,  the  unpardonable  guilt,  of  self- 
murder  on  his  soul.  No :  his  brain  was  crazed.  A 
frenzy  that  he  could  not  control^  and  for  which  the 
Almighty  and  just  God  does  not  hold  him  responsible, 


192         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

drove  him  to  his  untimely  end.  And  now,  dear 
friends,  this  wreck  of  his  manly  body,  in  which,  as 
you  know,  feminine  beauty  and  masculine  strength 
were  singularly  blended,  this  wreck  of  his  body  is  only 
the  symbol  of  an  earlier  and  sadder  wreck  of  his  noble 
mind. 

"  It  would  be  manifestly  improper,  even  if  it  were 
possible,  to  enter,  at  this  time,  and  in  this  place,  upon 
the  detailed  proofs  of  this  conviction.  It  is  enough 
for  me  to  say  to  you,  my  friends,  that  there  seems  to 
be  abundant  evidence  in  the  history  of  that  last  sad 
day  of  his  upon  earth,  of  a  disordered  mind,  aggravated 
by  a  diseased  body.  And  now,  looking  back,  as  we 
often  can  do  in  the  light  of  the  event,  and  weaving 
together  a  great  many  things  that  seemed  to  be  small 
at  the  time — those  who  knew  him  and  loved  him  best, 
even  the  mother  that  bore  him,  and  the  sister  that 
clung  to  him  and  mingled  her  pure  soul  familiarly 
with  his,  and  the  father  that  garnered  up  in  him  his 
joys  and  his  hopes,  are  all  fully  satisfied  that  long  ago 
melancholy  marked  him  for  her  own. 

"  More  than  six  months  ago,  when  he  was  in  a  for- 
eign university,  where  he  had  gone  as  the  honored 
representative  of  this  college,  there  is  reason  to  believe 
that  the  obscure  and  terrible  disease  which  ended  in 
his  death  began  its  fatal  ravages.  As  I  stated  before, 
it  is  not  possible,  or  needful,  or  proper,  to  enter  into 
detailed  proofs  on  this  point.  Those  who  knew  him 
best  are  fully  satisfied  in  regard  to  it.  And  now,  in 
this  persuasion,  we  blot  out  from  our  estimate  of  his 
character,  and  from  our  auguries  of  his  destiny,  what- 


BURIAL.  193 

ever  may  have  been  unpleasant  in  the  remembrance  of 
the  past  few  months,  and  we  come  back  at  this  time  to 
that  day  of  his  espousals,  and  of  the  gladness  of  his 
heart,  when,  in  the  prime  and  vigor  of  his  manhood, 
with  all  his  honors  fresh  upon  him,  he  laid  himself 
down  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  Christ  and  entered  into  an 
everlasting  covenant  with  his  God.  No  one  that 
knew  him  will  suspect  for  a  moment  that  there  was 
any  formality,  any  hypocrisy,  any  want  of  deep  and 
real  conviction  in  that  covenant  with  God.  Surely, 
that  covenant  was  not  broken,  and  God's  loving  kind- 
ness was  not  withdrawn  from  him." 

At  the  close  of  the  exercises  in  the  church,  the  body 
was  returned  to  the  hearse,  and  followed  to  the  place 
of  burial  by  the  entire  College  and  Seminary. 

Slowly  and  sadly  the  procession  entered  the  old  village 
grave-yard — the  Westminster  Abbey  of  Presbyterian- 
ism — where  Princeton  has  laid  the  mightiest  of  her 
reasoners,  and  the  most  eloquent  of  her  divines.  The 
gray  old  monuments,  whose  homeliness  is  made  beau- 
tiful by  the  rare  flowers  of  historic  recollection  that 
cluster  about  them,  and  which  "Parian  marble, 
wrought  with  consummate  skill,  could  not  replace," 
told  each  its  own  story  of  the  burial  of  greatness  in 
the  past.  Along  the  grassy  walk,  and  under  the 
shadow  of  the  whispering  pines,  the  precious  casket 
was  borne  to  the  open  grave,  made  at  the  southern  end 
of  the  ground  consecrated  to  bereaved  student  friend- 


Gently  and  tenderly  the  body  was  lowered  into  the 
grave,  by   the   hands   of   loving   class-mates.     For   a 


194:         PRYOR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

moment  there  was  a  silence,  broken  only  by  the  voice 
of  the  wind,  as  it  sighed  with  the  sweetness  of  JEolian 
music  through  the  branches  of  the  trees.  A  sere  and 
faded  leaf  fluttered  through  the  air  to  the  grave, 
rustled  gently  as  it  touched  the  mould,  and  made  its 
tomb  with  the  dead.  With  simple,  natural  pathos,  it 
seemed  to  tell  the  story  of  humanity — ' '  We  all  do  fade 
as  a  leaf." 

The  early  twilight  deepened ;  the  sad  October  haze 
covered  the  throng  as  with  a  pall;  the  silence  was 
broken  by  the  voice  of  the  clergyman  uttering  the 
words  of  prayer  and  benediction.  One  by  one  the 
relatives  and  friends  passed  around  the  grave  and 
gazed  down  into  the  narrow  home  where  was  laid 

"  Youth,  Hope,  Beauty, 

Innocence,  and  Trust: 
Life's  lost  blossoms— born  for  fruit — 
But  consigned  to  the  dust ! ' ' 

It  was  a  dark  and  gloomy  scene  to  the  eye  of  sense, 
but  it  required  no  great  power  of  the  imagination  to 
pierce  beyond  the  darkness  of  earth,  and  see  with  the 
eye  of  Faith  the  spirits  in  glory  welcoming  the  departed 
soul  to  the  higher  joys  and  holier  services  of  heaven. 
The  years  shall  come  and  go,  but  as  often  as  the  pil- 
grimage is  made  to  Princeton  — "  Mecca  of  the 
Mind" — the  student  shall  linger  in  that  place  of  burial, 
and  be  glad  that  the  same  consecrated  mould  which 
contains  the  ashes  of  Edwards,  Davies,  and  the  Alex- 
anders, also  holds  all  that  was  earthly  of  Theodorick 
Bland  Pryor. 


CHAPTER  XX. 


AFTERMATH. 


"  This  was  the  noblest  Roman  of  them  all: 
His  life  was  gentle,  and  the  elements 
So  mix'd  in  him,  that  Nature  might  stand  up, 
And  say  to  all  the  world :  This  was  a  man  I  " 

— Julius  Ccesar,  Act  V,  Scene  5th. 


HE  prominent  traits  of  Pryor's  character  have 
already  been  indicated  in  the  progress  of  our 
narrative,  whenever  they  seemed  to  be  most 
naturally  suggested ;  it  is,  therefore,  unnecessary  for 
us  to  add  any  elaborate  description.  Some  features, 
however,  seem  to  warrant  a  clearer  and  fuller  notice  in 
our  concluding  resume. 

Most  of  our  readers  were  personally  acquainted  with 
and  will  readily  remember  Pry  or  as  he  went  in  and  out 
among  them.  For  those  who  were  not  permitted  to 
know  him,  we  feel  compelled  to  attempt  some  descrip- 
tion of  the  man,  preparatory  to  a  fuller  analysis  of  his 
character.  He  was  gifted  with  a  vigorous  constitution, 
and  a  body  that  was  without  an  approach  to  deformity 
or  blemish.  Blessed  with  sound  health  from  his  youth 
up,  he  brought  to  the  years  of  maturity  a  person  which 


196  PKYOR  :    A    BIOGRAPHICAL    STUDY. 

combined  all  the  elements  of  a  noble  and  manly  beauty. 
His  stature,  which  was  five  feet  and  eleven  inches  at 
the  date  of  his  graduation  from  Princeton,  was  com- 
manding; his  limbs  elegantly  symmetrical,  and  his  car- 
riage, though  not  exactly  graceful,  was  far  from 
unpleasant.  His  walk  was  rapid,  rather  by  the 
measure  of  his  steps  than  by  swiftness  of  motion.  His 
head  and  face  would  have  attracted  attention  any- 
where, and  his  features  once  studied — and  they  com- 
manded study — could  never  be  forgotten.  A  forehead 
of  great  beauty;  sad-hazel  eyes,  whose  eloquence 

11  Twin  born  with  thought,  outstripped  the  tardy  voice  "  ; 

a  nose  faultless  in  its  Grecian  chiseling  ;  cheeks  through 
which  "timid  blood  had  faintly  melted,"  and  a  mouth 
that  spoke  of  firmness  and  decision,  all  combined  to 
make  his  face  one  of  great  and  attractive  beauty.  But 
it  was  not  the  loveliness  of  the  face  that  gave  him  his 
highest  charm.  It  was  the  mind  that  spread  its  sun- 
light or  its  shadows  over  all : 

"  The  soul  brought  out 
To  light  each  charm,  yet  independent 

Of  what  it  lighted,  as  the  sun, 
That  shines  on  flowers,  would  be  resplendent 

AY  ere  there  no  flowers  to  shine  upon." 

In  conversation,  there  was  a  lighting  up  of  the  coun- 
tenance, and  sometimes  an  animated  sparkle  of  the 
eye  that  made  his  usually  quiet  expression  bright  and 
beaming,  and  added  greatly  to  the  force  of  his  uttered 
thoughts.  The  general  fascination  of  his  manner  was 
noticed  and  felt  by  all  who  were  brought  in  contact 


AFTEKMATH.  197 

with  him.  Another  has  referred  elsewhere,  to  the 
"  impression  of  intense  purity  in  his  looks,"  which, 
happily,  conveys  a  clear  idea  of  the  outward  expres- 
sion of  what  we  shall  find  still  more  marked  in  his 
character. 

The  examination  of  his  peculiar  intellectual  qualities 
reveals  to  us  a  mind  chiefly  characterized  by  great  in- 
vestigating, pondering,  remembering,  and  applying 
power.  He  was  never  dismayed  by  the  difficulty  of 
any  subject,  and  in  his  investigations  of  things  obscure 
or  intricate  in  their  relations,  he  displayed  great  acute- 
ness  in  unravelling  and  simplifying  them.  Truth  was 
the  great  end  and  object  of  all  his  study,  and  to  arrive 
at  this  goal  he  sought  the  best  and  shortest  way.  He 
also  meditated  much,  pondering  long  upon  difficult 
processes  of  metaphysical  and  theological  argument. 
He  was  a  close  and  careful  thinker.  His  mathematical 
studies,  pursued  to  such  an  extent  as  they  were,  made 
him  eminently  accurate.  His  powers  of  memory  were 
great.  What  has  been  recorded  of  Archibald  Alex- 
ander, a  man  almost  peerless  in  this  respect,  might 
truthfully  be  asserted  of  him.  "  It  was  not  the  memory 
of  words  or  any  conventional  signs.  But  in  regard  to 
faces,  localities,  historical  events,  the  opinions  of 
authors  and  classes  of  men,  the  sources  of  knowledge, 
and  above  all  what  was  held  together  by  a  logical 
thread,  his  recollection  almost  surpassed  belief. "  Nor 
did  he  glean  in  the  fields  of  knowledge,  simply  for  the 
purpose  of  hoarding  whatever  he  could  gather.  He 
early  learned  to  put  to  a  practical  use  his  garnered 
wisdom.  He  not  only  sought,  found,  studied,  and 
14 


198         PRY  OR:  A  BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDY. 

remembered,  but  also  applied.  Hence  he  obtained  a 
high  reputation  for  soundness  of  judgment,  and  was 
often  appealed  to  for  his  opinion  or  decision  in  matters 
under  dispute. 

As  to  the  nature  and  extent  of  his  attainments,  we 
can  scarcely  trust  ourselves  to  speak ;  anything  like 
what  we  believe  to  be  the  truth  in  this  respect  might 
challenge  belief  among  those  who  knew  him  not.  In 
mathematics,  the  philosophy  of  the  mind,  and  in  moral 
science,  his  proficiency  was  tested  and  placed  beyond 
dispute  by  rigorous  examinations,  duly  attested  and 
recorded  in  the  annals  of  the  college  from  which  he 
graduated.  In  these  branches,  the  only  wonder  is 
that  the  mass  of  his  reading  did  not  mar  the  native 
vigor  of  his  understanding. 

He  was  not  a  pretentious  scholar.  His  recitations 
at  college  were  not  characterized  by  flippancy,  but  in- 
variably by  a  quiet  self-possession  that  was  evidently 
founded  on  a  thorough,  profound,  and  solid  compre- 
hension of  what  he  had  been  studying,  whether  it  had 
been  acquired  by  an  intuitive  knowledge,  or  by  close 
and  energetic  application. 

Pryor  was  fascinating,  both  by  demonstrativeness 
and  by  reticence,  his  frankness  and  his  mystery.  "His 
soul  was  often  seen  on  his  lips  ready  to  fly,"  and  there 
was  now  and  then  a  spiritual  unveiling,  wonderful  in 
quantity  and  quality.  He  was  too  much  occupied, 
however — too  grave,  too  earnest,  and  quiet — for  that 
fragmentary  jocosity,  or  free-and-easy  intercourse  on 
the  level  of  little  nothings,  in  which  average  natures 
take  pleasure.  His  studies  of  himself  and  his  states  ; 


AFTERMATH. 


199 


his  steadfast  sympathies  with  the  simplest  objects,  as 
well  as  his  insight  into  the  sublimities  of  nature,  his- 
tory, and  philosophy,  neutralized  the  strong  affections 
which  he  cherished  for  those  around  him,  and  affected 
an  insulation  from  his  fellows  which  was  not  the  result 
of  his  own  choice.  Throughout  life  he  was  separated 
from  the  mass  around  him  by  the  manifold  superiority 
of  his  soul,  the  greater  quickness  and  richness  of  his 
sensibility,  the  peculiar  keenness  and  gravity  of  his 
conscience,  the  distinguishing  force  and  constancy  of 
his  aspirations  after  internal  harmony  and  usefulness. 
No  being  was  ever  more  simple,  unpretending,  and 
kindly-natured,  and  yet  he  seemed  inaccessible.  Even 
in  the  midst  of  an  up-gazing  world,  a  mind  of  unusual 
strength,  tenderness,  and  earnestness,  is  likely  to  be 
alone ! 


SUPLfiE'S    TRENCH    ON    WORDS. 

LECTURES  ON  THE 

STUDY  OF  WORDS 

Addressed  (originally)  to  the  Pupils    at 
THE  DIOCESAN  TRAINING  SCHOOL, 

WINCHESTER, 

By  RICHARD  CHENEVIX  TRENCH,  D.  D. 

ARCHBISHOP   OF    DUBLIN, 

WITH  AN  EXHAUSTIVE  ANALYSIS,  ADDITIONAL  WORDS 

FOR  ILLUSTRATION,  AND  QUESTIONS 

FOR    EXAMINATION, 

BY    THOMAS    D.    SUPLEE, 

Head  Master  of  St.  Augustina's  College. 


Suplee's   Trench   on    Words 

Is  used  as  a  Text  Book  in.  the  following 
Schools  and  Colleges  : 

Princeton,  Trinity,  Hobart.  Racine,  St.  Stephen's,  St.  Au- 
gustine's, Shattuck  School  (Dartmouth),The  University 
of  California  and  many  others,  and  is  recommended 
by  the  leading  educators  of  the  country. 


Published  try  W.  J.  Widdleton,  27  Howard  St.,  N.Y. 

AND  FOR  SALE  BY 

ROMAN  &  Co.,  SAN  FRANCISCO, 

AND  LEADING  BOOKSELLERS  EVERYWHERE. 


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